


Shadowed Rose

by shyla915



Category: RWBY
Genre: Death God, F/F, F/M, Heavy A.U. after volume 3, M/M, Mild Crossover, Multi, Possessive Ruby, Protective Ruby, Reincarnation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-15
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2020-09-04 08:27:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 35
Words: 117,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20250430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shyla915/pseuds/shyla915
Summary: Alice died alone and unloved, given a chance to find a new home and family she chose Remnant as her destination of choice. Now she has another choice to make, one that could destroy everything she's built. Does she save the world, or conquer it? Even with all her knowledge, she can't stop herself from growing attached to those destined to die. The only she can do is change fate.





	1. Prologue

I do not own RWBY

Sitting against the blackened wall of the cellar, Alice stared at the door separating her from the outside world. All the hinges and locks were on the other side, so she didn't even have a chance to set herself free. Nothing could change that she was going to die here. Alone in the dark with no source of comfort she was going to waste away into nothing. She would become nothing, just a hollow skeleton sitting here waiting for a man who would never come back to save her. Curling in on herself she didn't even have the energy to flinch as she slid down the rough wall to lay on the damp floor. Feeling her black knotted hair drift across her neck she closed her emerald eyes.

In truth she didn't mind dying here, it wasn't like anyone would miss her. Fitting how the one person she'd thought cared was leaving her to die all because she disagreed with him. It was almost ironic, especially since she couldn't bring herself to hate him for it. Feeling her body get weaker she didn't even try to hold on. What was the point in living when her entire life was suffering? Her mother didn't want her, and her father had been planning to marry her off at the first chance he got. Even the one person she trusted didn't care. No one had ever cared for her unless it helped them in some way. She was a tool for those around her and now she was going to die alone and unloved just like she'd always feared.

When she opened her eyes again, Alice was surprised she wasn't hungry. Not that she minded the feeling. The biggest issue in the cellar had been hunger after all. Looking around the white space surrounding her she realized that she'd died. The world had finally succeeded in killing her, the thought was more amusing than it should have been. She should have been upset by her death or at least not holding back laughter.

The amused cough from behind her caused her to jolt, not that she would ever admit it. She had nothing if not her pride, it was the reason she hadn't taken the easy way out of shooting herself. Turning slowly, she sighed in relief at not finding hazel eyes waiting for her, instead, they reminded her of sapphires. A dark rich gemstone blue the same color as the stone pendant her mother used to wear. Her eyebrows wrinkled at the thought of the old witch who made her life hell for fifteen years. She honestly considered the woman was the devil, even after meeting the real demon in human skin that left her to die. His black hair looked nice and soft though, so it balanced out the misery she got looking at his eyes.

Sighing at the woman's thoughts he focused his power and resisted the urge to smirk when she gasped. His blue eyes turning a vibrant shade of gold. The color filled her with a sense of relief, it wasn't tied to her past at all. Still, the only being who could do something like this would be a god. Why would a god come to great a simple dead girl?

"I see your intelligence remained intact," the deity said. Feeling her face heat up the woman looked away from him. Reaching up to play with her hair she allowed her lips to twitch into a smile. It was nice to be complimented for something other than looks. Feeling silky locks under her fingers she almost hugged him. It'd been so long since she felt like herself. It was just hair but somehow the action caused tears to sting the corners of her eyes.

"Sorry," she whispered. People didn't like when their tools showed emotion.

"No, it's I who owe you an apology," he said. Clearing his throat, the god tried not to show anger at her thoughts. The girl hadn't had the best life, he'd known that when he chose her, but hearing her thoughts on how best not to anger him caused his blood to boil. Making a mental note to punish the people who hurt her with hellfire, he said, "we've been talking this entire time and I haven't introduced myself. I'm an incarnation of Death, you can choose any name I've been called if you want."

Tilting her head Alice studied him. There was so much she wanted to know but she wouldn't annoy him by asking. Instead, she thought back to the lessons on mythology she'd been given. It had been one of the only subjects she'd enjoyed. He didn't have the haunted eyes of a Greek god or the power-hungry ones of a Roman god.

"Is Anubis okay then," she asked softly. The question causing the god to beam at her. Flushing at the pride in his eyes she shuffled slowly before saying, "will you tell me why I'm here now?"

"Of course. As the god of death, I control souls and the reincarnation cycle," he explained and was pleased to see her hanging off his words. She honestly wanted to know, and it made him feel smug that his chosen soul wanted to be around him. Most feared death and hated him more than anything else. He just hoped she would still like him when they met again. Putting the thought from his mind he said, "I've decided to allow you to be reincarnated into a world of your choice. After going through your memories I've singled out three that I think you would do well in; RWBY, Fairy Tail, an-"

"RWBY," she said quickly. Realizing she'd cut him off the woman slammed a hand over her mouth and hoped he wouldn't take offense. Lips twitching into a smile he let her know he didn't mind. It was nice to watch her eyes light up. Closing his eyes, he searched out the perfect body to house his chosen. He doubted she would like to be reborn as a boy.

"Goodbye Alice, see you soon," he said waving his hand. Watching her fade from his realm he smirked and turned his attention to his green-eyed guest. On Remnant, Ruby Rose was born with the soul of Alice.


	2. Choices, Weapons, and Cardinals

I don't own RWBY

In her first life, Alice didn't care for her mother and the woman hated her. After living with Summer Rose and knowing what a mother was supposed to be like, she wanted to scream until the world shattered like glass. Instead, she tied the long strands of her dark red hair back and silently stared into the mirror. Now that she had her memories back, she wanted to storm into limbo and demand that Summer is returned to her. It hurt to lose the only good mother she'd ever had. However, she knew that the dead should stay dead.

Smoothing the black dress, she was wearing, she closed her eyes. Not even the black shoes pinching her feet could distract her from the hollow feeling taking root in her chest. She could scream and shout, but nothing would bring Summer back, and somehow that was worse than any pain she felt. Taking one last look in the mirror she moved toward her door. Opening it slowly she faltered as the sounds of shouting met her ears.

"You should never have gone with her," Tai hissed, and she could imagine her father's shoulders slum even farther. The thought made her hands shake. What right did he have to judge her father when he wasn't even there? When he continued saying, "you got her killed."

Rage surged in her body and her hands curled into fists. It took all her self-control to stay where she was instead of rushing out to attack her honorary uncle. Tai didn't know what happened either. He wasn't there. When her father didn't retaliate, she bit her lip. She could imagine his dull eyes staring down at the floor as he took the abuse without fighting back.

"I refuse to let you put Summers child at risk and get her killed the same way you killed her mother," Tai continued. She heard a dull thud that was most likely her father slamming the other man into the wall. Part of her wanted him to keep fighting. It was selfish but she didn't want to lose him too.

"You will not take my daughter," her father growled, and she could hear the rage in his voice. It was the same that burned in her blood. Branwen blood that cried for vengeance against those that would drive them apart. Family was more important than anything, surely, he wouldn't let her go so easily.

"You would put her in danger with your semblance," Tai said coldly and she could hear mocking in his voice. Blood dripped to the floor as her nails pierced the tender skin on her palms. He had no right to use her fathers fears against him. It was cruel and she found herself shaking.

"No, I wouldn't," her father retaliated and she felt her heart lift at the confidence in his voice. Her father wouldn't leave her. Please, don't let him leave her.

"You can't control it," Tai said, "bad luck affects everyone when you're around. All it would take is one mistake and Ruby would be dead just like Summer. You would have killed both mother and daughter."

He was wrong. He had to be wrong. Her father was the only one she had left. She didn't want this life to be just like the last. She wanted to be happy for once. As much as she tried to push down the dread haunting her, she couldn't make it go away. If it was to protect her, her father would do anything. Even leave her.

"I won't just disappear and abandon her," her father said but she could hear the vulnerability in his voice. Tai was winning. Her father was going to leave her just like everyone else. She paled at the thought and felt her heart sinking like a stone in the ocean.

"Then teach her to fight. Show her how to survive, but don't put her in danger by being her father," Tai told him. And Ruby stumbled back when she heard him agree reluctantly. Stepping back into her room she closed the door and slid down to the floor. Opening her palms, she stared at the crescent cuts without seeing them. Closing her eyes, she leaned back against the door and curled in on herself. It was how Yang found her an hour later.

Throughout the funeral, Ruby stared at nothing her silver eyes unable to focus as her mind raced. Breaking away from her family as they returned home, she leaned against the tree across from her mother's grave. Sinking to the ground, Ruby let herself shatter into pieces under the watchful eyes of the red-eyed raven above her head. It was the last time she allowed herself to wallow in her tears. The pain running rampant in her chest carrying through her body as she screamed and shouted under the moonlight.

Threats and roars falling past her lips until she faded into pleas and begging. She didn't want this. She wanted her mom, not the dark forest surrounding her. Feeling warm arms wrap around her, she shuddered to a stop. Shaking she held still as Raven hummed in her ear. Running a hand through the girl's hair, the red-eyed woman held back her own tears as Ruby collapsed against her. Clinging to the older woman Ruby sobbed until her body passed out.

(five years later)

Entering Signal for the first time, Ruby didn't care very much for the first class on her schedule. The knowledge that it would be with Tai making her feet drag against the polished tile floors. It would have been easier to hate him if the man was a horrible father but instead, he was amazing. Frowning she didn't even care that Yang abandoned her. Instead, she walked through the halls with a determined stride as the end of her cloak brushed her ankles.

Entering the classroom, she painted a bright smile on her face before sitting down slowly. The action drawing the attention of the indigo eyed boy talking to Tai. He could sense the turmoil raging through her body and he wanted to pull her apart until she was screaming on the ground. Tearing his attention from her he nodded to his teacher's advice before leaving the room. His own class would start soon. He would have to play with her later.

Ruby glanced at Tai with forced happiness as the other students entered the room. Watching him jot down their first lesson on the board she bit her lip to hide the interest that bubbled in her. She didn't want to be interested in his lessons. In truth, she blamed her interest in the man on his skill at making cookies.

"Good morning everyone," Tai said gaining their attention. He loved his job more than anything in the world. She watched him closely as his hand glowed with a faint light, "today we'll be unlocking your aura and learning about different semblances you could have."

At the mumbles of awe and disbelief, Tai grinned. The smugness radiating off him wasn't something they could see but she could. Knowing just how happy he was about this made it hard to hide her excitement. As he started making rounds and unlocking aura's she found herself holding her breath as he got closer to her. When he finally arrived at her side she was almost shaking with excitement. The moment her aura was unlocked she smiled at the warmth that flowed through her chest. She felt safe for the first time since her mother's funeral. Looking down at her glowing red aura she wiggled her fingers in fascination.

It was two hours later that she finally felt her excitement fade into dull irritation. The amused indigo eyes and darkened auburn hair of the boy two years older than her let her know that she'd changed something in the timeline. Cardin Winchester was supposed to meet her at Beacon, not at Signal. Frowning she didn't care how bitter the expression made her look as he circled her like a shark. Mentally going over her body she didn't think there were any injuries that could have called the bully to her side.

"Well aren't you an interesting little thing," he said. The tone screamed mocking and she scowled. Eyes narrowing, she considered kicking him below the belt to see what kind of noise he made. Sensing her rising anger, he smirked saying, "I can sense your annoyance but then again the depression its hiding must be really strong."

He could sense her annoyance. Sense as in feel. Tilting her head, Ruby bit her lip. If he could feel emotions that would make him an empath. Cardin Winchester the fabled bully of Beacon was an empath. This was golden. Slamming a hand over her mouth she giggled the sound causing him to stumble. Watching her collapse into laughter he frowned as the interest he had in her skyrocketed.

(Age 12)

At first, she wasn't sure about making a scythe. After all, despite appearances, she wasn't Ruby Rose. It was why she'd glared at her sketchbook for six days before even starting to design her weapon. Now however she was reasonably sure that she could use her scythe without making herself look like a fool. Something in her just wanted to design and use the weapon, so much that she hadn't even realized what she was sketching until the weapon was halfway done.

Still, she had added several surprises to the weapon to make it fit her style. The metal was a silver that matched her eyes while the trim was a dark black inlaid with twisting vines and roses. The rifle part itself would have enough power to not only blast through a full-sized unarmored grimm but also help her fly across the battlefield like a death fairy.

Sighing she laid the finished weapon down on her workshop table gently. It was her baby. Stilling, she stiffened as hands closed over her eyes.

"Guess who," he whispered his breath tickling her ear. Rolling her eyes even though she knew he couldn't see her, Ruby lashed out slamming her elbow into his stomach with enough force that he winced. Letting her go he rubbed his stomach before glancing at the weapon she'd just finished. Cardin could feel her happiness at seeing him, so he didn't mind her aggressive actions. After all, she was his first real friend. He liked to think the connection went both ways. Running his eyes over it he said, "looks good. Although it's probably heavier than my mace."

"Your mace is a dumpster fire," she said. Her tone was playful as she pulled the second design from her pocket. Spinning in her chair, she offered it to him as a wide excited grin appeared on her face. Not even trying to calm down she asked, "what do you think?"

Unfolding the design, he looked over it slowly. The two dust types and the folding blade would give her a good concealed weapon. All in all, it was a good-looking weapon. He did not doubt that she would be able to pull it off. From the vine and leaf design, she'd drawn over the leaf he knew she would be worrying over the weapon as she created it. Little details were her greatest weakness and strength. Humming he passed it back.

"I think you should redesign my mace," he said ruffling her hair. Hearing her scoff, he stepped back as she dropped down from her chair.

"Nope, you got into that mess yourself, unless you want it to be covered in petals and vines," she teased. Blanching at the thought of his perfectly manly mace being disgraced he shook his head quickly. Snickering she looked over the assorted metals asking, "so, normal or fivefold Damascus."

"Fivefold, with acid treatment," he said before picking up her scythe. Holding the heavy weapon in his hand he winced at the strain it put on his wrist, he didn't see how she would be able to move around comfortably with the thing. Tilting his head, he asked, "what are you going to name this thing?"

"Crescent Rose, the dagger is going to be Thorn," she stated. Rushing back to her workbench she dropped her chosen materials down as he folded the weapon and moved it out of the way. Stealing her chair, he closed his eyes and tuned into her emotions as she began working. The calming sea of focus and delight made his own emotions settle.

(Age 14)

Kicking her father away, Ruby grinned as the sharpened blade of her scythe dug into the hard-packed dirt outside their house. It was all too easy to dodge his reaching hand by using the recoil of her weapon. What she didn't see was the hang that closed around her hood before he tossed her several feet to the left. Landing with a groan she pouted like a child. Today was supposed to be the day she won. Instead, she was once again on her back staring up at the sky while her father chuckled.

"Pretty sure that's cheating," she complained. Sitting up slowly she rubbed her neck as he grinned at her without shame. Standing slowly, she stretched the tension in her body fading as she let herself cool down. One day it would be him on the ground instead of her.

"Sorry kid," he said amusement leaking from his voice. Crossing her arms, she jabbed her finger in his direction.

"You're supposed to play fair," she snapped. Despite her complaints, her silver eyes were filled with amusement.

"Life's not fair and I won't delude you into thinking it is," he said. His eyes darkening as the amusement left them to be replaced with hollow pain. If life was fair, Summer would still be here and he would be able to be her father instead of her trainer. Nodding in agreement, Ruby turned away from him in favor of dodging Yang's attempt to hug her.

The second attempt she wasn't lucky enough to get away as the blonde slammed into her and sent them both down to the ground. Listening to her sister gush over her actions. Ruby stared up at the sky with annoyance, tomorrow she would have her match against the entire graduating class to determine if she would be allowed early graduation. The day after that was her fifteenth birthday. Then in less than two months, she would be going to Beacon as the youngest student in history.

So, the next day, standing in front of the door to the training stage at Signal, she couldn't stop her arms from shaking. This wasn't about going to Beacon early, she already had a backup plan for that, nor was it about winning. She just wanted to prove that she belonged here in this world that she chose. Walking out onto the stage against a class of fifty graduates. The top fifty in the school, she didn't know if she should laugh or cry when she saw both Cardin and Yang among them.

Taking a deep breath, she stilled her shaking hands, she had to take out the heavy hitters first. Meeting Cardin's eyes she knew he could tell she was nervous. Smirking at her, he winked as the buzzer sounded. Petals drifted to the ground before the entire stage erupted into chaos.


	3. Preferences

On principle, Ruby hated windy nights because they messed up her hair. It was selfish but she'd rather not have her nice waist-length braid turn into a frizzy mess because of the humidity. Not even the hood of her reinforced leather jacket could keep the wind at bay when it decided to mess with her hair. Not that Nicolas hadn't done a wonderful job turning her cloak into a jacket, she just wished he could figure out a way to keep her hair from copying the tail of a ticked off cat. Shaking the thoughts from her mind she pulled on the black fingerless gloves she was wearing and shuffled on her combat boot-clad feet. She didn't need to start a fight with Roman Torchwick, her spot at Beacon was already guaranteed. An accomplishment that was right up there with stopping Cardin from bullying the faunus. Tracing the rose emblem on her headphones she frowned. She didn't need to pick a fight, but she wanted to. It was a strange feeling. Zipping up her jacket to cover the dark red metal mesh tank top she was wearing, the girl shrugged before walking toward the dust shop.

The empty shop was silent as she entered. Something that she honestly didn't know how to deal with. Silence reminded her of the dark cellar she'd died in. Meeting the shopkeeper's eyes, she gave him her best smile.

"I'll be in the back," she said. Slipping on her headphones she decided to try getting at least a little shopping done. She'd already used most of her bullets during the skirmish with Beowolves the other day. Not that she minded. It was fun to send herself flying across the battlefield. It was like flying. Grabbing a couple of boxes of bullets, she snatched some Ice Dust bullets for emergencies. Looking between the powdered fire and ice dust for Thorn she decided to grab both just in case. Humming along to the music she wandered to the magazine rack.

Setting down her basket she picked up a magazine on weapon upgrades and flicked through it in mild interest. She needed a sword. Okay, maybe she didn't need one, but she wanted one. It was greedy but she would rather be a walking arsenal than getting caught with her pants down. Seriously her cannon counterpart had a bad habit of losing her weapon. Feeling someone tap her shoulder she almost groaned. She was so not ready for this. At all. Pulling down her headphones she turned slowly. Tilting her head, she wondered where the thug got his outfit because he was lacking intimidation factor. The red sword was also underwhelming.

"I said hands up," he said. The high-pitched tone of his voice made her lips twitch. Holding back her amusement she let her hand drift down to the dagger holstered on her thigh.

"So, you're robbing me then," she asked. Should she kick him into the wall or knock him out with Thorn. Either way, he would be out of the game. Deciding to go with the option that caused less property damage she waited until he nodded to vanish. Appearing behind the man she slammed the hilt of her dagger into his head and winced as he groaned. Watching him drop to the ground she shrugged before picking up her basket and making her way to the counter.

Passing by the now alert thugs, she contained her sequel of excitement. Roman Torchwick master thief was only a few feet away. She wanted to dance around the store and ask for his autograph but felt that might be a little much. Feigning disinterest she placed her basket on the counter slowly. Hearing one of the thugs shift behind her she rolled her eyes before vanishing.

Stepping back cautiously, Roman watched his thugs fall to the ground with annoyance. This was the last time he was hiring help from Junior. Neo would never let him live this down when she found out. The woman had a silent way of teasing him that he hated more than anything else. Watching her land and twist on her heel, he brought his cane up to block her kick. Stumbling out of the store doorway he parried the downward slash of her dagger before putting distance between the two of them.

Stopping in place, Ruby tilted her head before sheathing her dagger. Here she was standing in front of her favorite character, outside of Blake, and trying not to have a meltdown. The happy dance she was doing in her head didn't really help the situation. Pushing down her excitement viciously she tried not to let any emotion show on her face.

"My name is Ruby Rose," she said softly. Giving him a slight bow, she motioned for him to introduce himself. Cardin would have called her a drama queen, but she was too amused by his confused and amused expression.

"Roman Torchwick," he said slowly. Realizing it wasn't a trick he allowed a smirk to stretch across his lips. Oh, he liked this one. Returning her bow, he said, "master thief of Vale."

Lips tilting upward, Ruby gave him a respectful nod before unfolding Crescent Rose from her back. He was a strong fighter, and personal bias aside, she would be damned if she let him die this time around. The ending of volume three had killed her so she would make sure no one died. Especially not her favorite thief. Seeing his eyes widen at the sight of her scythe she smirked the expression bordering on wicked as she pulled the trigger. The ground behind her exploded as she used the recoil to send herself crashing through the air.

Reacting quickly, he blocked the blade of her scythe with his cane. The force caused his arms to shake and he whistled. Neo would like her. Shoving the girl back he pulled the trigger on his cane and was mildly amused when her body burst into petals letting his attack impact the concrete ground behind her. Reforming she tilted her head raising an eyebrow as he shrugged.

Twirling her scythe in her hand she motioned for him to give it another shot. Roman couldn't stop himself from laughing as he did as she asked. Catching the flare like a bullet with the blade of her scythe she threw it into the air. Seeing his eyes flicker toward it she spun. Releasing her scythe, she watched it fly toward him. When he leaned back and dodged, she moved. Bursting into petals she appeared above him.

Thorn burned as she drove it down toward his chest. Roman grabbed her wrist before the weapon could hit as he landed on the ground. Her knee was planted on his stomach as she held the barrel of his cane away from her neck. Seeing the excitement and joy in her eyes he bit his lip to hold back a laugh. This girl was exactly like Neo.

"Well, Red, what do we do now," he asked. Seeing her eyes widen at the nickname he grinned. Ruby fought back the smile that wanted to bloom across her face in favor of flickering her eyes to his. He could always join her army and help take over the world. It was hard to stop herself from voicing the offer, but she held back.

"I-"

Stilling, Ruby frowned. Glancing toward the sky she spotted the black raven flying above her. Taking advantage of her distraction he lashed out. Shoving her away from him, Roman kicked out the blow forcing her to release his cane. Sending a blast at her face he rushed toward the ladder hanging off his escape building. Landing harshly, Ruby sighed before pushing herself up. That had been embarrassing. Rolling her shoulder, she sheathed her dagger before pulling her scythe from the concrete road. Glancing at the building she backed up to get a running start. Rushing forward she pulled the trigger on Crescent rose and activated her semblance at the same time. Spinning in a downward arc she hoped he would dodge.

Roman shivered his instincts telling him to move. Diving forward he dodged the scythe as Ruby let the momentum carry her into a kneeling position. Meeting his eyes, she grinned. This was fun. Fighting him was amazing and she didn't want to stop. Seeing the expression on her face, Roman rolled his eyes before matching her grin as the bullhead on the roof below powered on. And there was his escape route.

Wincing Ruby covered her eyes with one arm as he climbed in through the open door. Right Cinder was supposed to be waiting. She'd honestly forgotten about the woman, which considering the lights now shining in her eyes, wasn't a good thing.

Hearing Roman call out a goodbye, she stiffened. Her eyes catching sight of a fire dust crystal as it flew toward her. Oh, she was so kicking him for that. Her aura flashed ready to absorb the impact when a purple shield appeared before her. Sighing, Ruby shifted her weapon to rifle mode and opened fire as Roman switched places with Cinder. When all her shots were blocked, Ruby knew it was too late to save Amber, not that she'd thought there was a chance of that.

Eyes narrowing, she studied the older woman with focused eyes. Even after she'd killed Pyrrha, Cinder had never seemed evil. A little enraged at the system but not evil. It was something that she'd thought about for a while now. She'd concluded that most of the woman's grudge was at Ozpin. Watching the airship escape, Ruby sighed and holstered her weapon.

"Thank you for the help, I'm going to check on the old man now," she stated. Barely sparing the woman more than a glance she walked to the edge of the roof and stepped off. Bursting into petals she floated gently to the ground before reforming and entering the shop. She didn't quite care that Glynda was following her.

She'd messed up by forgetting about Cinder. What if the next thing she forgot about was something more important. Seeing the old man holding her order she reached for her wallet and frowned when he shook his head.

"Thank you," he said pressing the bag of ammo and dust into her hand. Narrowing her eyes, she thought about refusing before giving in and giving him a small smile.

"This is a one-time thing," she said causing him to chuckle. Nodding he watched her leave with the older woman. The second she stepped out of the shop Glynda grabbed her arm and started dragging her away. Frowning Ruby considered stabbing the older woman, the feeling only increased when she was dragged to a police station of all things and forced into an interrogation room.

An hour into the woman's lecture about public safety and foolish actions, Ruby knew why her father called her a stuck-up witch. Not that she was stupid enough to mention it to the woman. Glancing at the small window, Ruby wondered if she could be fast enough to burst into petals and escape. Tracing the emblem on her headphones she raised an eyebrow as the woman slammed her ridding crop onto the table. Grabbing the end of it before she could pull away, Ruby smiled.

"Now, Miss. Goodwitch, as much as I would love to explain to you how not only the street empty, but there was almost no property damage. I'm tired and hungry so if you could get to the point of your so far pointless lecture, I would appreciate it," she said her voice bordering on mocking. Releasing the woman's weapon, she dared her to say anything as the insult registered in her mind.

"Glynda," Ozpin said knocking on the door. Sighing the woman went to open it. Giving the headmaster of Beacon a quick look over, Ruby could admit that there was something strange about him. There was nothing surface level that she could see inspiring so much hate from Cinder. Watching him place the plate of cookies on the table she tilted her head. Deciding to toy with him she smirked.

"So, do you always give cookies away to fifteen-year-old children," she asked. It was fun to mess with people. She knew her father loved doing it and after watching Tai almost have a mental breakdown from pranking, she'd decided to take up the hobby. For a second she saw him falter and held back a vicious smirk. Motioning to the plate she said, "I mean it's just kind of strange that the first thing you put on the table is potentially drugged cookies."

Hearing a cough that sounds suspiciously like a laugh from Glynda she blinked. She hadn't even realized the woman could laugh. Giving her a quick look, she found the blonde woman staring at the ceiling.

"I assure you that the cookies are not drugged," he said, and she tilted her head innocently. As the headmaster of a school, she would think he'd catch on quicker than he was.

"That sounds exactly like what someone would say if the cookies were drugged," she said with a distrusting glance at the cookies. He grimaced looking for a moment like he was seriously reconsidering his life choices. Biting her tongue to hold back a laugh she wished this was a moment she could record and show her father.

"Miss Rose, I would never drug a child," he said, and she saw yet another opening. Tilting her head with the most innocent expression she could muster. Which given the fact she was bone tired and desperately needing a bath came out looking like a ruffled cat.

"But you would drug someone who wasn't a child," she asked. He stared at her in complete silence. Understanding clicking in his eyes as Glynda held back another laugh. It was like dealing with Qrow all over again.

"You're toying with me," he finally said, and she laughed and nodded. She was surprised he took this long to figure it out. When he commented on her silver eyes she simply blinked. Oh, right, the eyes that let her turn a giant grimm dragon to stone. But no, he wasn't going to explain that was he. Giving him an unimpressed look that she was sure matched her father's day drinking expression, she rolled her eyes.

"Headmaster, I'm tired and cranky can we please get this over with," she asked. Tai was not going to be happy she skipped dinner. That man would shove food down her throat if he thought she wasn't eating enough.

"Right," he said. The expression on her face had matched her mothers so well for a second he thought he'd been looking at a copy. Clearing his throat, he said, "And where did you learn how to do this?"

Seeing his subtle cue, Glynda held up a video of Ruby's fight against Roman. The part at the end when she was pinning him looked way too suggestive even to her. Feeling a blush rise on her face she hoped they would think it was over being caught rather than the image on the screen. Part of her wondered if Glynda would send her the video, for research purposes of course.

"Qrow, Tai, and an instructor at Signal," she said. Tearing her eyes from the screen she made a mental note not to pin the thief to the ground again. It would be way too awkward now that she'd seen it from that angle. Taking a moment to process her thoughts, Ruby gave an internal groan. Please don't let her admiration of the thief turn into a crush. She was pretty sure he and Neo were a couple unless they had room in their bed for one more? Nope, not going there. Shaking the thought from her mind she tried to focus on what Ozpin was saying rather than the fact she liked the way Roman's eyes looked.

"Miss. Rose if I'm not mistaken, you're the girl who graduated two years early correct," he asked. When she nodded, he smiled slightly, it would seem she'd inherited her mother's talent for battle, although he couldn't decide if her father was Qrow or Tai. Both had influenced her fighting style. Tapping his fingers against the table he said, "I look forward to having you at my school this year."

Giving him a slight nod, she barely followed the rest of the conversation, her mind still locked on her romantic preferences. Logically she knew it was only natural for her to like more mature partners, but this was weird. He was an enemy and here she was her mind still locked on the fact he was attractive. Frowning she didn't even notice picking up her bag of explosive dust and walking home until Tai was pulling her into a hug.

On autopilot she allowed him to drag her into the kitchen and give her something to eat. She was sure tasting food was something she was supposed to do but it wasn't happening. Ignoring his worried look she went through the motions of laying her bag on her dresser and placing all her weapons where they were supposed to go. Stumbling through taking a shower she barely hit the bed before she was dialing Cardin's number.

"Ruby do you have any idea what time it is right now," he growled sounding more asleep than angry. Deciding to be blunt she opened her mouth on instinct.

"I like older men," she said. The words falling past her lips before she could even think them over. Hearing him choke she frowned. Laying in her bed she listened to him try to learn how to breathe for about five minutes before realizing something. Letting a wicked smirk curve across her lips she waited until he calmed down. Sighing she said, "and women."

The hacking cough that left his lips was followed by a dull thud as the boy rolled off his bed from shock.


	4. Innocence

Ruby sighed her hair falling around her shoulders in a curtain of black and red. It'd been a week since what she now called the dust shop incident and her dramatic call to Cardin who seemed to be avoiding her. She eyed Yang warily, she had already tried to hug her several times already. She'd managed to dodge every attempt so far, but she knew it was only a matter of time before she was caught. She couldn't run forever, not that she wouldn't try.

"I can't believe you're actually coming to Beacon with me," Yang said again for the fourth time in less than an hour. In her mind, Ruby was still her adorable little sister who was too cute to slaughter monsters. Ruby felt her eye twitch but didn't push her away when she came in for a hug once again. Maybe if she got it out of her system the older girl would be less likely to do it again in the future.

"Yang," she said simply once the older girl had released her. She could feel eyes on her, and she hated it. Being the center of attention was not something she knew how to do in either of her lives.

"Yes," her sister asked.

"Can you not hug me in a room full of our future classmates," she said. Yang mumbled a quick apology but didn't seem that apologetic. Rolling her eyes, Ruby decided to ignore the older girl in favor of looking out across her soon to be classmates. Noticing Jaune stumbling toward them she raised an eyebrow at the green tint his face had.

"Come on Rubes," the blonde said, "Be happy you've graduated at the top of our class and two years early too."

What she meant was Be happy you managed to beat half the graduating class into the floor and take their spots in the graduation ceremony as the top graduate from Signal. Twirling a strand of hair around her finger Ruby frowned slightly. Kids were mean and she did not doubt that some of them would be less than pleased she was attending Beacon.

"True but some people will still think I cheated my way into Beacon," she said causing Yang to frown. Ruby had that look on her face again, the easy acceptance for whatever came next. She doubted Ruby would even pretend to care if someone tried to bully her.

"If they do I'll just beat them up," she replied her eyes glowing red for a second. Yang was protective of her younger sister and she wouldn't allow anyone to bully her. Rolling her eyes Ruby let her lips tilt into a soft smile. The older girl wasn't the most reliable, but she was still family.

Tuning out her sister and looked out the window of the bullhead. She could see everything from up here. Even the hard-stone walls of Signal seemed to be little more than an anthill. Looking down on the world like this made her feel strange as if she was floating in the clouds unable to touch the ground. The streets looked so small from up here. Hearing the sound of stumbling footsteps and knowing that Jaune had been waddling in their direction she absently pulled Yang out of the way when he stumbled past them heading for the trashcan.

"I'm going to find a place to sit down," Ruby said.

If she stayed Yang would want to continue the conversation and she really didn't want to talk about it. Wandering away from her sister she made sure not to touch anyone as she drifted through the crowded airship. Neither of her lives had increased her tolerance for other human beings. People could be cruel, and she would rather not draw their attention if she could help it. Seeing an empty bench, she couldn't stop her eyes from lighting up. Sitting down quickly she couldn't stop the yawn from passing through her lips. Bringing her knees up to her chest, she curled in on herself trying to be as small as possible. Closing her eyes, she leaned forward pressing her forehead against her knees and allowed herself to drift into a light sleep. Of course, with all these people around it wasn't likely she would even be able to doze. She was tired, ever since Qrow learned of her early graduation he had pushed her beyond her limits, even going so far as to wake her up for morning training on the day she left for Beacon.

She loved the man, but he was a sadist and from the smirk, he would give her he knew it too. Part of her loved the training time she got with her father while another wanted to toss him out a window as repayment for the dark bruises scattered across her back. If he ever tried to flip her again, she would stab him, family or not.

Feeling the other end of the bench tip she groaned. Why couldn't the universe answer her prayers for a quiet nap? The rich scent of baked cookies filled her senses and she glanced up. Seeing the bag of chocolate chip cookies held in front of her face she followed the hand holding them to Cardin. The smirking boy waving the bag barely saw her as she snatched it from his hand. Maneuvering so that she could eat, and she didn't even notice when her legs ended up laying across his lap.

"Did you really have to wake me at three in the morning to discuss your sexual preferences," he asked bluntly. Most people would have choked on the cookie and dissolved into trying to breathe for the next hour. She simply shrugged.

"I was having a crisis," she said. Rolling his eyes, the boy looked her over. From the tired glow in her eyes to the way her movements were sluggish he was willing to bed that Qrow upped their training in celebration. He'd had the man as a teacher once and almost died from exhaustion. Watching her devour the bag of cookies he frowned slightly. He'd always thought that Qrow pushed the girl too hard.

"At three in the morning," he asked. When her lips tilted into an amused smile, he rolled his eyes. She wasn't even trying to be apologetic. Knowing she didn't really care, he asked, "what even made you come to this sudden realization?"

Feeling her face heat up, Ruby was glad she'd already finished the cookies. Shifting slightly at the memory of the image that had been on Glynda's scroll, she tried to ignore the strange feeling in her chest. It wouldn't help to focus on something that would never happen. Instead, she shoved the emotion down before poking him with her toe.

"I fought with Roman Torchwick," she admitted. Cardin focused his semblance on her emotions and smirked.

"And now you have a crush," he stated with certainty.

"No, now I want him in my bed," she said without thinking. When he choked before breaking into strangled laughs, she tilted her head in confusion. Wait, she'd said that out loud didn't she. Flushing the younger girl listened to the sound of his laughter that reminded her of a cross between an injured duck and a tuba. Getting his laughter under control he brought up the glaring flaw in her plan.

"Your fifteen," he said amusement dripping off his words. Frowning Ruby looked down at her lap. In this body, she was fifteen, but in her defense, she'd died a grown woman. It was hard to keep herself reminded of the fact she was now a teenager again.

Before she could comment and continue the argument, she felt the airship land. Pouting she stood and stretched. She really hoped the beds at Beacon were comfortable. Avoiding Weiss would be easy, so long as she didn't turn into a clumsy fool and knock over the girl's luggage. Hearing Yang give out a war cry, she rolled her eyes. The blonde was leaving her behind again. Sticking to the back of the crowd, she exited the airship slowly.

It was Jaune who caught her attention. The blonde was vomiting into the bushes his body shaking. Breaking away from Cardin she kneeled beside him and rubbed his back gently. She'd known he had horrible motion sickness, but the boy looked half dead. Frowning she glanced at Cardin who had come to stand at her back. Aura helped with most things so having his unlocked would most likely dull his motion sickness.

When he groaned and looked up at her she fought to keep herself from tensing. His blue eyes reminded her of the ocean. A childlike innocence shined in them that she couldn't describe because she'd never felt it. She wanted him. His loyalty, his trust, she wanted him on her team even if it meant giving up having Cardin by her side. Helping him to his feet she sighed. He wouldn't be strong enough to stay by her side unless Pyrrha lived. Which meant she would have to find another way to get Cinder on her side.

"Thanks," he whispered. Giving him an understanding smile she patted his shoulder.

"It was no problem," she said. Holding out her hand she said, "I'm Ruby Rose and you are?"

"Jaune Arc," he said shaking her hand. Glancing at the broad-shouldered boy behind her he wondered if he should be worried. Following his gaze Ruby let an amused smile spread across her face.

"This is Cardin Winchester," she said. Tipping his chin up Cardin studied the smaller boy before focusing on her emotions. The amount of fondness she felt for the boy caused him to roll his eyes. She'd just met the blonde and she already wanted to collect him. She had a bad habit of collecting interesting, dangerous, people. One example was him, after all, it would only take a tug of his aura to use someone's own negative emotions to drive them insane. Seeing the wicked smirk that drifted over his face, she rolled her eyes saying, "ignore the creepy expression. He's a real softy once you get to know him."

The disbelieving expression on the blonde's face said he clearly didn't believe her, and Cardin couldn't blame him. He knew he looked like a thug. In truth, he was more likely to drive someone to tears than help them. It was a talent that he'd found useful over the years and he saw no reason to change himself.

"Ruby, if we don't hurry, we'll be late," he said gaining her attention. Giving him a nod, she returned her attention to Jaune who was looking between the two of them in confusion. When he tilted his head furrowed his eyes the boy reminded her of a cute little puppy. Except cute, not that she didn't like Zwei. She was just a major cat person.

"Right. Do you want to walk with us," she asked.

"Sure," he said. The bright tone making her feel a little happier.

Watching them dissolve into a conversation, Cardin resisted the urge to roll his eyes in exasperation. She'd just met the boy and already he was part of their group. He was supposed to be her best friend, not some blonde-haired runt. The jealousy was eating him alive as he watched them talk. It wasn't as if Ruby didn't have any friends other than him, but none of them had captivated her attention quite as quickly as this boy. He could admit being a little rough around the edges but at least he was able to protect her. This boy wouldn't even be able to hurt him let alone an enemy.

If Ruby wanted a pet, he would get her a cat, but knowing that she would want the weak little boy on her team was annoying. He just hoped that her decision to take in the blonde didn't come back to bite her. He would, of course, be testing the boy in his own way during the next few months. Even if he didn't get the boy on his team at least he would be able to test him during combat class. At least he wasn't in danger of the two dating.

Entering the auditorium where they were going to be greeted by the headmaster, Ruby rolled her eyes. Yang was surrounded by her friends and was talking to a girl with long white hair. Weiss Schnee was talking to her sister. Something that in the cannon universe wasn't quite such a docile event. If she wasn't mistaken, Yang was flirting with the heiress and getting a warm reception. She'd known about Yang's preferences for a while now and had genuinely thought her sister would try to have a relationship with Blake.

Shrugging off the thoughts, she broke away from Cardin and Jaune in favor of vanishing into the back edges of the crowd. Hiding in the shadows she looked over the assembled students with a mixture of interest and intrigue. If Beacon stays standing, they could become the defenders of the world. Barely listening to Ozpin's speech, she let her eyes find Blake. She'd always had a soft spot for cats. The only question was who she wanted as her teammates.

Jaune was a must, seeing as how he was now her newest pet project. She was sure that turning him into a strong capable huntsman would be easy. Or at the very least she would have fun. With Jaune came Pyrrha since their relationship was honestly adorable. Not that she would allow the two to act like idiots and dance around each other.

The only issue was if Cardin should be a leader or her teammate. She had no desire to follow orders so letting someone else led wasn't an option. Walking to the ballroom where they were supposed to sleep, she set up her sleeping bag next to Cardin's causing the boy to give her an amused glance. Motioning to her sister who was setting up near the heiress, she saw understanding flash through his eyes.

Scoffing he picked up his sleeping bag before kicking hers close to the wall. He didn't even try to be subtle as he boxed her in between the wall and his body. Rolling her eyes at his protective actions she sat down. He'd always treated her like she was a fragile little girl when they were around other people. Watching him lay down slowly she turned her attention to the faunus girl reading her book across the ballroom.

"Do you still hate the faunus," she asked softly. They never talked about the faunus. Not even when he was being a bully to them. It just wasn't something she liked discussing with him.

"Yes," he said. The lack of hesitation causing her heart to drop.

"So hypothetically if my teammate turned out to be one, would you be angry," she asked. Both knew the question wasn't hypothetical at all. Cardin had always known she was a schemer if she saw someone or something she wanted then all bets were off. Now it seemed she wanted to add a faunus to their little family.

"At you," he asked. Seeing her nod he shook his head saying, "no not at all."

"Yay," she said. The cheer although mostly fake did have a relieved tone. If he started hating her she wouldn't be able to survive. Falling down onto the sleeping bag she didn't really care that the thin straps of her nightgown had fallen onto her shoulders.

"Now onto my hypothetical situation," he said. Looking away from her he stared at the ceiling. Ruby might be one of the strongest people he knew but she was oblivious to everything unless it was right in her face. Covering his eyes with his hand he asked, "what if we're on separate teams?"

"Do you not want to be on my team," she teased. Pulling her blanket up to her chin she turned over and stared at him. While sensing emotions wasn't her semblance, she'd known him long enough to learn his tells.

"Just asking," he said slowly. The words falling past his lips didn't hide the way his shoulders tensed in worry or how his hand clenched. He was anxious, his entire mind filled with worry. He wanted to be on her team so he could protect her. It was something they'd always done for each other. Protect and save, keeping each other alive and sane.

"We'll still train together," she said. Even if they weren't on the same team, she wouldn't abandon him. Grinning she said, "maybe our teams can train together too."

"Joint training," he repeated. It sounded nice.

"Yep," she said. Glancing at her he smirked his anxiety fading. She made it sound so simple that he couldn't argue with her.

"Why Puppy Boy," he asked pouting slightly.

"Jaune," she asked. When he nodded, she said, "it's because he's innocent. I want to keep him safe."


	5. Twitching Bows

Ruby woke hours before the sun came up. With bleary eyes she checked the time on her scroll and sighed at the flashing five am that popped out at her. Glancing over at Cardin she wasn't surprised to see him still snoring. The boy could sleep through an avalanche if he wanted too. Sitting up slowly she stretched and considered waking him. If she did then he would complain, but if she didn't, he would complain. Either way, it was a losing scenario. Shrugging she decided to let him sleep, after all, there was a possibility, he wouldn't even be able to find her before initiation started.

Standing she gathered her sleeping bag, blankets, and pillows before rushing off to the locker rooms. Part of her cursed her father for getting her into an early waking schedule while another was too busy hoping that no one was in the locker rooms. She hated changing around other people. There was just something about it that made her feel like a vulnerable little girl. She guessed it was just anxiety from being a teenage girl again. Tossing her stuff into the locker she'd been assigned; the girl grabbed her equipment for the day before vanishing toward the showers.

It only took her thirty minutes to get ready and most of that time was spent braiding her hair so it wouldn't get in the way. Twirling a strand around her finger she wondered if she should cut it. She loved having long hair but there was always a chance of it being used against her. Yet, she didn't want to let it go, not when having long silky hair was something, she was so proud of. Making a mental note to ask Yang's opinion later, she slipped on her boots before standing up form the bench she'd claimed as her own. The thing was comfortable, and she was thinking about writing her name on it with a permanent marker.

Shrugging on her jacket she moved to her weapon locker. The next hour and a half were used to double and triple check that Crescent Rose and Thorn were ready for the day. Mainly sharpening the blades and cleaning the barrel of her rifle, if it stalled in the middle of a fight she would be screwed. Thorn only worked as a backup against smaller opponents. She still wanted a sword. A nice weapon she could hide, or simply because it would be better in a situation. Glancing up at the clock she sighed when she heard footsteps. Watching the people walk by her she perked up when she saw a black bow.

Sliding her weapons into their proper place she walked over to the other girl. Noticing her bow twitch as she approached, Ruby let her lips tilt upward into a small smile. Blake really had no idea how bad a disguise the bow was. When the girl turned to face her Ruby found herself loving the golden color of her eye, even if they were filled with suspicion.

"Hi, I'm Ruby, I was wondering if you finished the book you were reading last night. From what I saw of the cover it looked pretty good and I was wondering if I could borrow it," she asked. Seeing the suspicion turn to surprise, Ruby mentally congratulated herself.

"Not yet," she stated. She seemed wary and Ruby could hear the hesitation in her voice. Blake knew it was unfair, but she didn't trust new people very easily. After all the last person she trusted tried to blow up a train full of innocent workers. Realizing the girl was still waiting for an answer she said, "I'll make sure to let you borrow it when I'm done. I'm Blake Belladonna by the way."

Giving Blake a short-wave goodbye, Ruby kept the soft smile on her face until the faunus left to get her weapons. Hearing a thud, she turned and watched Yang stumble to her locker. The girl's hair was in a mess and she seemed more likely to fall asleep standing than make it through initiation. Allowing a smirk to cross her lips Ruby skipped to her side.

"Good morning," she said while Yang slid her gauntlets on. The blonde groaned and Ruby grinned, she loved annoying her sister early in the morning.

"Why are you so happy," Yang asked. Glancing at her sister while making sure she had enough dust rounds loaded.

"Initiation sounds fun," Ruby said her eyes wondering over to where Jaune was talking to Pyrrha and Weiss. She winced when he was pinned to the wall. It seemed that in every universe he was destined to annoy Weiss.

"And initiation means you get to fight," Yang stated. Closing her locker, she patted her sisters head before sitting down to brush her hair. Snatching the brush from her hand, Ruby hummed as she began untangling her sister's blonde hair. She was one of the only people Yang trusted to brush her hair, Tai was one of the people Yang despised being anywhere near her with a brush. Last time he brushed her hair ended with him being set on fire.

"So, is there a reason you spent almost all-night flirting with that white-haired girl," Ruby asked. The teasing tone causing Yang to smirk. Before she could speak Glynda's voice called over the intercom calling them to the cliff side. Letting the subject go, Ruby dropped the brush into her sisters' hand before starting toward the door.

Stopping to help Jaune to his feet she raised an eyebrow when he pouted at her. The entire walk to the cliff he complained about how cruel Weiss had been to him. Something that Ruby was finding insanely amusing. Knowing how much he would grow to love Pyrrha it was funny to listen to him complain about Weiss. Reaching the cliff, she glanced down at the launch plate under her feet with barely concealed interest.

Did the headmaster actually think it was a good idea to launch his students into a forest filled with grimm? From the wicked glint in his eyes, he was enjoying himself. In truth, she didn't know what to think of Ozpin. The man was obviously more than he seemed, and she was willing to bet he had something to do with the pale skinned grimm woman she'd seen at the end of volume three. As a rule, she tried not to judge people on things they'd yet to do, so she was willing to give him a chance. So long as he didn't hurt anyone she cared for.

Listening to his speech with only half her attention she met Cardin's gaze. The boy gave her a dull unimpressed stare as his hand rested on his mace. He was not happy she'd left without him this morning. Especially since he hadn't woken up in time to eat breakfast. Hearing something about a landing strategy he frowned before seeing her lips tilt upward into a smirk. The sensation of her amusement washed over him and he narrowed his eyes.

Ruby held back a laugh as Cardin was sent flying through the air, the darkened glare on his face promising retribution to everyone involved. When it was her turn, she sent a worried glance at Jaune. She was worried, despite knowing that Pyrrha would save him. She couldn't help but fear for his safety. Feeling the plate under her feet begin to move she noticed the smug satisfaction lighting up Glynda's eyes. The woman was holding a grudge.

Crashing through the air she could see the entire forest. She wasn't worried about getting hurt since she had a plan, but the view was amazing. Sending her aura into her jacket the almost invisible black lines of gravity dust lit up and she stabilized high above the forest. It wouldn't last long, but it would give her enough time to choose a landing spot. Pulling Crescent Rose from its place on her back, she twisted making sure that her feet were resting on the little area between the blade and the shaft. Aiming for a spot with fewer trees she pulled the trigger and hoped she'd waited long enough to miss ramming into a bird. A few dozen feet above the ground, she activated her semblance and burst into petals. Landing gently, she smirked at how easy it had been, and with a quick look around she began to walk, idly she wished for her headphones, she couldn't stand walking in silence. It reminded her of the cellar. She stopped when she heard a limb break behind her, thinking it was a grimm she reached back., her hand gripping her weapon tightly.

When something rustled behind her, she spun around her scythe unfolding in less than a second. She was surprised when instead of hearing the dying groan of a grimm she heard the clang of metal as a blade clashed against her own. Staring into the hardened golden eyes of the girl who'd stopped her scythe Ruby was impressed. Not many could have kept up with her speed.

Hearing Jaune yelp as the sharp blade was stopped just short of touching his neck, she couldn't hide her guilt for almost killing him. His black-haired partner held the weapon back barely and was surprised with how much force she had to use; the girl was impressively strong for someone so small. Seeing the light catch on the other girls' eyes, Blake thought they looked like liquid starlight as Ruby backed away quickly.

"Sorry I wasn't really expecting you," she said. Twirling the ending strands of her hair she gave them a nervous smile as she began putting away her weapon. The shrug Jaune gave made her concerned for his lack of personal safety but Blake's distrustful gaze made her uneasy. Tilting her head, she asked, "are you okay Blake?"

Frowning the faunus drifted her gaze away from the other girl. Ruby radiated innocence now but when she attacked her expression was just like Adam's. The girl was a threat and she didn't want to give someone another chance to hurt her when she was finally finding her own way. If Ruby was just like him then she didn't want to think about what the girl was capable of. Pushing away from the thoughts she decided to take a wait and see approach.

The girl nodded slowly, and Ruby sent her a small smile. Feeling her lips twitch Blake forced herself not to return the action. Turning back to Jaune Ruby noticed the red and gold spear in his hand. Seeing her look he flushed slightly saying, "it's Pyrrha's. She kind of saved me from certain death."

Ruby hummed in understanding; everything had gone according to plan on that aspect. The only issue was that Blake was standing beside Jaune. History had changed, and now the teams would be different. She didn't really mind creating her own future. Returning her attention to the matter at hand she ran her eyes over the weapon. So, Blake and Jaune were partners, and if Pyrrha was coming for her weapon then that meant Ruby would have a partner in the red headed warrior. She mentally grinned at the prospect. She would love to have a strong partner who was less likely to die.

Flickering her eyes up to Jaune's face she frowned. A small thin line of blood slid down his neck from the tiny cut just below his ear. She'd hurt him. One of the most innocent people she'd ever met and her own foolishness had caused him to bleed. If it wasn't for Blake, he would be dead, the small red line on was proof enough of that. Stepping close to him she grabbed his arm when he tried to move away from her.

"Um Ruby what are you doing," he stuttered out as her fingers touched his neck. The smaller girl was frowning darkly. Cursing herself she looked at the blood on her fingers with disdain. She'd sworn to protect him and instead he was bleeding because of her. It was hard to keep her hand from shaking.

"Your aura should have healed that," Blake said. Her words cutting off Ruby's train of thought. Narrowing her golden eyes, she flickered her gaze between the two. Releasing him, Ruby took a few steps back her silver eyes looking down at the ground in shame. It was an expression that never would have crossed Adam's face and Blake couldn't' stop herself form feeling relieved at the fact the girl wasn't a heartless monster.

"What's an aura," he asked.

For a moment Blake thought he was joking. There was no way the headmaster would admit a student that didn't even know what aura was. He had to be joking. Hearing Ruby give a humorless chuckle she glanced at the other girl to find her holding a hand over her mouth.

Ruby wanted to scream but a laugh left her lips instead. She'd forgotten that Jaune didn't have his aura unlocked. Meaning her weapon could have severed the head from his shoulders. Looking over at Blake she found the older girl giving her a strange look. Before she could explain aura to him, she heard a scream, that sounded like Pyrrha. Remembering that not only did they have her weapon but Jaune wasn't in the same spot as he was originally. When she found him missing the redhead would have gone looking for him and could have gotten herself into trouble. Without thinking she grabbed the spear and turned in Pyrrha's direction.

"Blake deal with your partner," Ruby ordered. She didn't have time to explain aura to Jaune and save Pyrrha. Activating her semblance, she pushed herself forward and nearly flew away from them. Blake stared at the trail of petals before giving Jaune an unimpressed glance. The sheepish expression on the boy's face made it increasingly difficult to hold a grudge against him.

Ruby didn't bother to conserve her aura as she moved. Instead, she gripped the girl's weapon tightly and found herself praying she didn't get there too late. Letting Pyrrha die now would ruin her plans. And honestly, she didn't want anyone to die right now.

Catching sight of Pyrrha barely holding back a deathstalker claw from crushing her she felt relived. Pushing herself to go faster, Ruby reached out her hands grazing the other girls' shoulders. Pyrrha jumped when she felt hands grip her shoulder but that was nothing compared to the way her stomach churned when she felt her body fade away and then snap back into place all at once. Slamming a hand over her mouth she gagged before collapsing to her knees. Guilt was all Ruby felt as the redhead vomited onto the grass. Her semblance wasn't a cake walk for those who weren't used to it. That she wasn't passed out on the ground was an accomplishment and something that made Ruby respect her even more.

"Sorry about that," she told the redhead while rubbing the girls back. When the world finally stopped spinning Pyrrha looked up and was surprised to see someone so young at Beacon. Pushing away the thought she told herself it didn't matter. If the girl was here, then she deserved to be. Their eyes met and Ruby grinned even as the deathstalker glanced around wildly for them. Helping the other girl to her feet, Ruby asked: "so partners then?"

"Sure, how do you want to do this," she asked turning her attention to the grimm. Passing the other girl her weapon, Ruby frowned.

"Aim for the joints and weak points such as the eyes," she said. The distracted tone causing Pyrrha to glance at her in concern.

Ruby bit her lip as she analyzed the large scorpion like grimm. Her weapon probably wouldn't cut through the grimm, but it would be best to try before she used anything too excessive. Sending the other girl an amused grin, Ruby unfolded her scythe before vanishing in a burst of petals. Momentum was everything in the fight since she doubted a cliff would appear for her to toss the creature from. Bouncing off the trees and rocks around the creature she tried to gain speed.

Locking her eyes on the joint connecting its leg to the body, she lunged. The sharpened blade of her scythe cutting deep into the grimm as she flew past it. Reaching out she dropped down onto her hand before flipping to her feet. A long cut ran along its leg but the limb remained attached. Cursing under her breath she glanced at Pyrrha who was laying down cover fire with the rifle form of her weapon.

She could do another pass but disabling the grimm would take almost all her aura. Drifting her hand along the shaft of her scythe she frowned. In the cannon universe, Weiss had frozen the grimm giving them time to escape. Turning her attention to the red eyes of the creature she let a smirk appear on her face. Even something like that would feel having its eyes turned into a pincushion.

"I need a minute," she shouted. She watched Pyrrha give a nod before acting. Digging the blade of her weapon into the ground she leaned forward her eyes tracking the grimm. It wasn't hard to line up the barrel of her rifle with the beady eyes of the grimm. Changing her bullets to ice dust she fired without hesitation.

Screeching the deathstalker reared back as its eye froze, sharp jagged spears of ice branched out of its eye. Watching the creature flail Ruby resisted the urge to snicker as it tilted back on its hind legs exposing its fragile underbelly. Rushing forward Pyrrha took the chance and stabbed up, her blade slid in easily and was soon followed by Crescent Rose as Ruby appeared beside her. With one last pained scream, the grimm faded into black smoke.

Ruby let herself fall back and laughed as she landed on the ground. She loved fighting, there was a certain addiction to being able to choose her own fate in a battle. Pyrrha watched her partner with amusement, it was interesting to see how the calm girl from before turned into a hysterical lunatic after the fight. Plus seeing the girl act her age was nice, even if the laughter was a bit unnerving.

"Oh my god that was fun," Ruby said after finally getting her giggles under control. She distinctly did not hear Pyrrha whisper about how crazy she was. According to Tai both, her parents were battle junkies and she could see how that was true.

"Wow," Jaune whispered from his place slightly behind Blake. He would have never been able to do something like that. Both the girls were amazing, and they would hate him once they discovered that he'd forged his transcripts. Shifting on his heels he glanced at Blake. The girl made a reluctant noise of agreement, she hadn't thought the younger girl would be so ruthless. The smirk on her face had sent shivers down Blake's spine and didn't know how to react to the realization. Ruby stood a wide grin still on her face, it was easy to tell that the girl was still amped up from the fight. Opening her mouth, she looked at Pyrrha.

"We are not doing that again," Pyrrha said forgetting to be polite in her rush to cut off her partner's question. Flushing the warrior gave a hesitant smile as her leader dissolved into a mess of disappointment.

"Did you unlock his aura," Ruby asked. The way Jaune winced had her eyes going to him. She was eyeing Jaune like he was an idiot, which he was, honestly coming to Beacon without aura was like jumping off a cliff and hoping you didn't die. She could respect him for bravery, but she also knew it would take a lot of work to get him on the same level as her and the others. The fact he was stupid enough not to prepare at all was annoying. She would have to leave his training to Pyrrha too. Ruby wanted them to be a couple. They would be able to rely on each other if anything happened to her. Plus, longswords and broadswords were not her things, Qrow had laughed at her for hours when she over swung and fell into a pond. She had the build for a katana, but not a longsword. Although the pond incident had more to do with the fact, she was trying to use her father's weapon than anything else.

"Yes," Blake said simply drawing Ruby from her memories and internal plotting. She looked up and smiled at the girl. Blake's ears twitched when she returned the smile reluctantly, not noticing the scythe wielders amused glance at her bow. Deciding to take a mental tally of all the times the black bow moved, Ruby turned to Jaune. She was betting somewhere between ten to twelve times during their initiation.

He gulped and tried to forced confidence when she turned her stare on him. The look on her face reminded her of his sisters. Knowing their tempers, he hated to think of how angry a huntress in training could be. Ruby frowned at the blonde and forced down her annoyance so she would sound calm. Looking him in the eyes she said, "we'll talk about this later."

Apparently, her calm anger was much scarier than her just exploding into rang and ranting at him, because she could have sworn, she saw him flinch. Jaune just for a moment was reminded of his mother when he did something foolish. Ruby tilted her head in amusement. From the corner of her eye, she saw Pyrrha's confused expression and Blake's smirk.

"Don't we need to get a relic," he said nervously. He could already see the three ganging up on him as his sisters did, it was intimidating, and he didn't know if he could survive if they did. Ruby nodded but the frown didn't leave her face. She knew what he was doing, and it wouldn't work, he was not getting out of this so easily. If she had to tie him down, she would.

"Right let's go," she said cheerfully and started walking. The other two girls shared an amused glance behind her back before starting to follow, while Jaune simply let out a resigned sigh.

They made idle conversation on the way to the ruin, and Ruby found herself enjoying being around the other three, she'd never gotten along with others, so having them accept her so easily felt nice. Like a warm fuzzy blanket, and now she wanted to lay in bed and cuddle. The habit was something she'd gotten from Tai who could drop down and curl up just about anywhere. Hearing Jaune whine about being teased she smirked, of course teasing Jaune was always fun.

All they had left to do was reach the chess pieces and pick two. If this was her team, then Cardin would be alone. Logically she knew he would be fine but she was still worried about him. Twisting her hair around her finger she laughed as Jaune almost tripped over a tree root. Walking ahead of them she let a small amused glow enter her eyes as the tree's parted to reveal the pedestals set up with chess pieces and she brightened at the wild haired blonde she saw standing there.

"Yang," Ruby shouted catching her sister off guard and tackling her to the ground. Giving in to her cuddle habit she clung to the other girl like a baby koala. The warmth flowing off her sister was like her own personal heater. Feeling Yang's arms wrap around her she felt like she was being crushed into a hug by the older girl, but she didn't care. Sitting up slowly, Ruby pulled away from her sister.

Pyrrha watched with a smile as the two girls sat on the ground chatting without a care in the world. Weiss, however, stared at them with longing she wanted to be this open and happy with her own siblings. Feeling slightly bitter, she turned her attention away from the girls to the chess pieces. Picking up one of them she crossed her arms and waited. The two girls stayed like that for a few moments just catching up or complaining about being launched off a cliff, until a girl with orange hair rode in on an ursa and proclaimed herself queen of the castle. Looking down at the matching chess piece in her hand Weiss groaned.


	6. Secret nest

"Weiss Schnee, Yang Xiao Long, Nora Valkyrie, Lie Ren, from this day forth you will be team WYRN." Ozpin announced. Ruby felt bad for Weiss, Nora would be a handful and if Weiss blew up at the girl like she did to the original Ruby then Ren would become Weiss's enemy as well. The two were inseparable and she had wondered about their past more than once. She smiled when she saw Yang glance over at her, the action appeasing her sister. Letting the smile drop once Yang looked away she frowned. She barely heard Ozpin announced Weiss as the leader before her team was taking the stage.

She was tense, and that feeling only increased when she was announced the leader of team RABN. The amusement of her team sharing a name with her wayward aunt was second place to her worries. What if she wasn't a good leader, and got them killed? Turning away as Pyrrha gave a congratulation punch to her arm. She found Cardin in the crowd. Giving her a small nod, he glanced at his own team before leading them away.

He would meet her later to discuss after of course he dealt with his own team. She'd promised herself that once they got to Beacon, she would tell him everything including her own circumstances. Yet she couldn't shake the fear of him rejecting her. He was her best friend, strange really since he was such a selfish person, but even close bonds can be broken. Feeling her fist clench, she bit her lip. She didn't want to lose him.

"You okay," Pyrrha asked her partner seeing the look on her face. She looked disturbed, to say the least. Setting a hand on the younger girls shoulder she held back a frown when the girl winced.

Ruby jumped at the redhead's voice. Forcing a smile, she reassured the older girl and led her team from the stage, "yeah just thinking."

Not totally accepting the answer Pyrrha nodded she didn't want to push her partner. Jaune, however, had no such tact or common sense. Without thinking he said, "really because you looked kind of panicked."

Blake's bow twitched yet again at the boy's idiocy. The blonde was one of the naivest people she'd ever met and that was saying a lot. She thought that maybe they should work on his foot in mouth syndrome first since it would get him in the most trouble. It was further proved when Ruby spun around and started to tease him about how cute it was that he was worried. She saw Jaune wince at being called cute and sighed. The least he could do was try to withstand Ruby's teasing. As Pyrrha dove in to save the boy from their leader, Yang tackled her sister and began gushing about how proud she was. Just for an instant Blake was able to see a genuine smile spread over the younger girl's face.

A few hours later, standing just inside their new dorm team RABN stared at their hard work with varying looks of pride. They had moved each bed to one of the four corners of the room and put the dressers at the foot of each one. The only other option had been bunked beds and Ruby truly didn't know if she could deal with that. The moment was ruined when their tiny leader ripped the blankets off every bed and made a giant nest on the floor.

"Ruby," both Jaune and Pyrrha scolded almost in unison making them both blush in shock. Resisting the urge to snicker Ruby made her move the instant the faunus of the team was distracted, Blake let out a surprised cry as she was pulled down onto the nest. A quick tug on her ears had her frozen in horror as the lightness on her ears registered in her mind. In Ruby's hand was her bow, and the smirk on the girl's face was triumphant.

"I thought it would be fox ears, but I guess you're cuter as a cat," she said causing the horror to transform into embarrassment. Ruby watched the girl flush and for only a second felt guilty, ignoring the feeling entirely she turned her attention away from her faunus teammate. Mortified Blake watched in silence as girl turned to Jaune and Pyrrha, how did she know. And why would she want to do this. Gritting her teeth Blake listened with half attention as Ruby said, "come on into the secret's nest."

Repeating her last two words in confusion they stared at the now revealed faunus. Pyrrha had nothing against the faunus but she was stunned that Ruby would go so far as to reveal the other girl to people Blake clearly didn't trust. Seeing the frown tugging at Jaune's lips she knew that on some level he felt the same. Taking their silence as acceptance of her plan Ruby dragged them down as well. It took all her self-restraint not to laugh at the way Jaune toppled over and bumped into Pyrrha. The blush both of them sprouted at the contact was amusing enough but the expression of dumb shock was much funnier than she'd expected.

"Not to be rude, but what's the secret nest," Pyrrha asked causing Ruby to grin like a child. Suddenly she felt like she made a mistake and should not have asked the question at all. The passing glance she sent over at Jaune told her that he felt the same way. Blake however was still in shock over having her safety net taken away so easily and was glaring. Although the expression made her look more like a sullen child than a huntress.

"Glad you asked. The nest is basically where we tell each other our deepest secrets," Ruby answered. Pushing down the quick shot of guilt at the fact she couldn't tell them about being reincarnated she felt her heart drop. The only people she would tell that to were the ones she trusted with her life. Shaking her head mentally she continued, "we're a team now and we can't have secrets from each other. Just think what would happen if Blake's cute kitty ears were revealed during a battle you would have been too shocked to defend yourself and would have just gotten killed."

Stiffening Blake processed her words, could she have gotten her teammates hurt by keeping her secret? The most evident question on her mind though was how did the girl know about her ears? It was supposed to be a secret to not only keep her from being singled out for being a faunus but also to help her hide from the White Fang.

"Your bow twitched," Ruby said. It was fun to see the way her teammates face changed from mortified to slightly insulted. Grinning she said, "Like a lot. I counted like ten times since we met in the forest, it didn't do a good job hiding your cute ears."

"Stop calling them cute," Blake finally said. Ignoring the blush of shame threatening to rise on her face she narrowed her eyes into a glare and snatched her bow back. Catching sight of the blush on her face from both the teasing and the truth of her efficient disguise caused Ruby laugh.

"They are cute, Kitten," she said once she got done laughing the way Blake's face went from red to pale at her new nickname almost brought the giggles back. it was always fun to tease people, she blamed Cardin for the habit. Deciding to take mercy on the feline faunus she turned her gaze on Pyrrha, who met her eyes and said, "you don't gush about your fame like you should making me think you hate even the thought of it. And Jaune you can go last since I'm curious how you got into Beacon without knowing about aura. I'll go first, my name is Ruby Rose Branwen, don't tell anyone about the last part because I'm not supposed to know about it. My weapons are Crescent Rose a high caliber sniper scythe and Thorn a dust channeling dagger. I turn into rose petals that make me move super-fast. Oh, and my goal in life is to get strong enough where my dad can be my dad again."

Ruby hadn't ever said her goal aloud before tonight. In fact, she hadn't even thought about how childish it sounded or how others would react to it. Seeing the pity spark in Pyrrha's eyes she almost snapped at the other girl. She knew that her goal wasn't something big or bright. It wasn't noble but selfish, yet the goal was hers and she didn't want to be pitied for something she wanted more than anything else in the world. Looking away from the other girl, she settled her gaze on her lap.

Blake watched the glow in her leader's eyes change the longer they were silent after her words. The goal was selfish, but she really didn't have the right to judge her leader. Not when she'd been a terrorist up until a month ago, which given the fact she'd left on less than admirable terms wouldn't be a good thing if her past caught up with her.

Seeing the sad look on her face Jaune straightened. He hated it when his sisters became upset and from then tensing of his shoulders it seemed Ruby now fell into that category as well. If her goal was selfish than his was even worse. She just wanted to help her family, while he just wanted to be a hero like his great grandfather. Even worse was the fact her family at least knew where she was while his was most likely still searching the woods in case he fell into a pit and couldn't climb out.

Before he could say anything though Pyrrha took a leap of faith and said, "My name is Pyrrha Nikos, and like Ruby guessed I hate the fame that comes with my name. I don't want to be put on a shrine and worshiped, I'd rather just be normal. My weapons are Milo a spear that can also be a short sword or rifle, and Akouo my shield. My semblance is polarity."

Ruby who had looked up in shock when her partner started speaking was staring at the older girl. She'd known that the redhead hated being famous but hearing it out loud was slightly concerning. Pyrrha's gentle smile wasn't enough to reassure her but it did make her feel slightly better about how selfish of a person she was.

"I faked my transcript to get into Beacon," Jaune blurted out without thinking and winced at the stares he got from his female teammates. He hadn't actually meant to say that out loud but he wanted to make Ruby feel better. Running a hand through his hair he winced a little at the exasperated look that overtook his leaders face. Deciding to bite the bullet he continued, "I have seven sisters and I want to be a huntsman like my dad and his dad before him. I took Crocea Mors and ran off before they could stop me. I don't want to be weak for the rest of my life, I want to be a hero like my great-great-grandfather who fought in the war. I didn't really think about having aura or anything else."

The way his voice became small at the end showed his insecurity and guilt, he clearly didn't know how to feel about his own choice. Running away from his family had been one of the hardest decisions in his life and even now he didn't know if he'd done the right thing or not. He could just imagine his mother crying when she found his empty bed and the thought caused his eyes to water. Covering his face, he took a deep breath and tried to shove back his emotions. Ruby stared at the boy who ruined the order of the secret nest before lunging forward and hugging him. She couldn't stand the kicked puppy look that covered his face.

"Don't worry we'll help you," she said without waiting for input from the other two girls. Promptly ignoring the raised eyebrow from Blake, she began to plot about how to upgrade his weapons and armor. Jaune clutched the smaller girl to him disbelief fought with relief in his heart. He couldn't believe she still wanted him on her team or that she was willing to help him. The thought that once she saw how hopeless he was she would abandon him still plagued his mind. Pyrrha touched his arm in support and Blake allowed a true smile to touch her lips.

Ruby pulled away slowly and allowed Pyrrha to capture his attention with her own assurances. Leaning back on her hands she stared at the ceiling with a grin, she was happy with how things were going so far. She could only hope Blake would respond as well as Pyrrha and Jaune. The faunus' secrets were much bigger than the other two, Ruby worried that she would make up a lie to protect herself.

The cat faunus bit her lip, the casual acceptance from Ruby and Pyrrha about Jaune made her think it wouldn't be so bad but at the same time her past was a little darker than theirs. Unlike them her hands weren't clean. She wasn't innocent in any way shape or form, and she'd learned at an early age not to trust people easily. Catching her leaders open silver-eyed stare she made her choice, just this once she would trust a human. Feeling her ears twitch she said, "my name is Blake Belladonna, i use Gambol shroud a duel sword pistol combo and my semblance is to leave behind a shadow to take the hit for me. I-I also used to be a member of the White Fang."

She expected them to hate her. Humans hated the White Fang out of either fear or just dislike of the faunus in general. She'd been bullied and hurt enough to know how humans reacted around those they hated yet her teammates were different, and they didn't react like she expected. Instead of freaking out or shouting insults all she got were shocked looks from Jaune and Pyrrha. Ruby was unreadable, however. She stared at the girl for a second before reaching out to her. Flinching Blake was shocked when gentle fingers touched her ears, she looked up to see a bright smile. Letting the girl pet her ears for a moment she relaxed at the casual acceptance of her past.

"Well I hope they don't want you back," Ruby said her smile turning into a smirk. If they did, she'd burn them to the ground and leave no one alive. Tilting her head she said, "I don't like sharing what's mine."

Blake didn't know if she should blush brightly or glare at the small girl. Her ears twitched furiously. Before Blake could argue with her Ruby jumped up.

"I call the bathroom," she yelled running toward the room in question, she could feel her scroll buzzing in her pocket and knew it was Cardin. Her back hit the door as she closed it behind her. She was pleased to hear the accepting tones from Pyrrha and Jaune to Blake, the night had gone well. They had classes tomorrow but for tonight they could just be themselves. One question did spring to mind as she pulled her scroll from her pocket and checked the message. He wanted to meet on the roof in an hour. Deciding to take the time to get changed into her pajamas she began unbraiding her hair. She would hate having to destroy the White Fang, they did do good things for the faunus, but if they came for Blake she would kill them all.

(Cardin)

Standing on the roof of their dorm he looked at the moon with cold eyes that didn't care for anyone of anything outside of those he'd chosen. He wasn't like Ruby who for all her wariness couldn't stop herself from caring for people. Learning that people were cruel and selfish at a young age he'd made the choice not to be kind to others. He could feel what they were thinking and most of the time it didn't line up with their words. A person could be cold and sever yet broken on the inside, he usually left those alone. Sometimes they could be quiet yet angry, a simmering rage threatening to turn into a fire, those were the people he drove to insanity. It was fun watching them think they were strong only to break when he applied a little pressure.

Ruby was different, her wounds were deeper than most, and the control she had over her emotions was staggering. Yet she never tried to be something she wasn't. She lied and cheated to get what she wanted while also protecting those she loved. Her emotions were smooth calming the demons inside him and he cared for her. It was why he would follow her to the ends of the earth before allowing someone to harm her, for despite all her will power Ruby was fragile.

She woke up screaming with nightmares that shook the walls. He knew because she slept over at his empty house enough to have her own room. She broke when no one was looking. He knew because he'd found her sobbing in the back garden as she tried to scrub blood off her hands. She hid every weakness behind a smile, and he hated knowing that it was fake.

It killed him because in the moments before she woke up, he could feel the pain, terror, and acceptance that flowed through her. Something terrible had happened to her and she just accepted it like she didn't care, yet he knew she did. If she didn't then she wouldn't cry when she woke up or be filled with such pain when no one was looking. She spoke of protecting Jaune like it was something she could do yet the first emotion she'd felt when looking into those innocent blue eyes was pain. Everything hurt her and he hated knowing he couldn't do anything to help her.

"I never took you for a stare at the stars type," Ruby said, and he didn't even flinch. Instead, he turned and looked at her with guarded eyes that didn't have any warmth.

"I think it's time you tell me the truth," he said softly. The tone could have brushed against her like silk but instead cut into her like a blade. The playful smile dropping into a frown as she leaned against the door for a moment before she nodded slowly. This conversation was one she'd been putting off for a long time.


	7. Truth

_"So, you're a reincarnated soul, who apparently knows the events that are going to happen up to the Vytal Festival. You've already changed some things. Your father is Qrow Branwen, the drunk combat teacher who quit teaching our graduating year. Oh, and apparently, you've already changed fate. Did I miss anything," Cardin asked, his guarded expression masking the spinning confusion he felt. Watching her nod, he focused on her emotions. Apprehension and fear drifted though her. He could tell she wasn't lying to him and somehow that made it worse. Taking a deep breath, he asked, "What have you changed?"_

_Shifting nervously, Ruby looked away from him saying, "My team, you, my fighting style."_

_"What," he questioned. The team and fighting style he could understand, but him. How had she changed him? Clenching his fists, he almost growled as he stepped toward her asking, "Ruby how did you change me? Who was I supposed to be before you came along?"_

_A bully. He was supposed to be the man everyone hated, the leader no one wanted to follow, and someone who couldn't see past his own ego to look at the bigger picture. She couldn't tell him that. Although he would pretend not to care, knowing would hurt him. Cardin was the last person she would ever want to hurt; he was practically her brother. Hearing a roar, she winced as his fist impacted the wall two feet away. Taking a deep breath, Cardin deflated._

_"That bad huh," he asked. Sitting with his back to the wall he ran a hand through his hair. He'd knew something was strange in the way she'd glance at him with disbelief when he did something nice for her. Looking up he rolled his eyes at the guilty expression on her face, grabbing her sleeve he pulled her down beside him. Yelping Ruby pouted as he laid his head on her shoulder._

_"You're not mad," she asked softly._

_"No. So you know everything that's going to happen," he asked. The blatant subject change caused her to raise an eyebrow, but she decided to humor him._

_"Generally, I know the important events," she said. Like Mt. Glen, that was really important. Alright, so anything to do with Roman was important, her sort of crush on the thief was not the major motivating factor either._

_"Right, so I'm going to ask you an important question and I want you to promise you'll answer," he said. Knowing she couldn't see his face he smirked waiting for her to fall for the bait he'd laid out. Feeling her guilt build-up he forced down a snicker, she was going to agree._

_"I promise," she said._

_"You've never been interested in anyone romantically, are you holding out for someone," he asked. The serious tone masking the amusement he felt. Feeling her tense, he chuckled internally. For a long moment she was silent before he heard a whining sound. Sitting up he looked down at her and broke into laughter. Her face was a vibrant red that matched her jacket. Covering her face Ruby whined again._

_"Your so mean," she hissed never uncovering her face. Chuckling he ruffled her hair._

_"Are you going to tell me who or do I have to guess," he asked. Panicking Ruby lashed out her hands covering his mouth to keep him from talking._

_"Don't you dare, "she warned. The tone failing to sound intimidating when she jolted back with a mouse-like squeak. Scowling at him she snapped, "Did you just lick me?"_

"Mrs. Rose is there any reason you're not paying attention in my class," Port asked at the same time Blake slammed her elbow into Ruby's ribs gently. Snapping out of her thoughts Ruby chuckled nervously before shrugging.

"I was planning team training this weekend and I guess I zoned out a bit," she answered. The blatant lie tricking everyone but Cardin. Watching the tiny girl charm her way out of trouble he smirked, something that his teammates noticed. Glancing between the girl and their leader the three boys shared a confused expression.

"Oh, have you already formed any ideas," Port asked. He was naturally curious about the youngest student in his class and he was looking to catch her in a lie. Seeing her face light up he watched as Mr. Winchester raised an eyebrow.

"Of course, first we'll work on teamwork then on getting Jaune up to the same level as the rest of us, and maybe get him some new weapons too. He is the only one on our team without ranged capabilities," she said ignoring Jaune's whining noise. She was glad she'd used a lie that she'd already thought about earlier or else he would have caught her.

"Very well but pay attention to the here and now rather than the future," Port said before resuming his lecture. Giving the professor a charming smile, she noticed Blake's less than amused face. Tilting her head innocently she relaxed when the older girl huffed and turned away.

It wasn't long before Ruby was bored again. Watching the chubby professor prance around while telling his story was amusing at first but now, she was just tired of it, plus after being caught once she couldn't zone out again without getting in trouble. When he asked which of them thought they exuded the qualities of a true huntsmen, she almost volunteered before shrugging as Weiss' hand shot up.

The glare that Weiss threw at Nora told her that Weiss had decided to fight the Boarbatusk because of Nora's lack of attention. It seemed the heiress was still tense despite being a team leader like she wanted, guess it went to show that Weiss wanted to be angry about something. Perhaps she just needed a spa day, she did have to interrogate the heiress anyway, taking her on a relaxing trip might not be such a bad idea. Ruby watched with amusement as the girl struggled, her style of fighting relied on quick and agile strikes, not the most effective when fighting by rage alone. The girl had a temper, one that Ruby would love to see in action. Hearing whispers behind her she looked back and raised an eyebrow. Seeing Ren's glare of death aimed at Weiss yelled at his partner, for cheering her on. Ruby resolved to handle the girl herself if she didn't mellow out, it would be a fun experience. Plus with Qrow's account number she could charge it all to him without paying a dime herself.

Looking over at Blake she was surprised to see the cold approval in her eyes as Weiss was tossed back, Ruby could guess she didn't really like the white-haired Schnee, although Weiss herself would be a powerful ally. Jaune and Pyrrha were watching in concern and when he flinched after Weiss was almost ran over, Ruby began to get annoyed, Weiss was stronger than this but without using her head she was creating an awful show that made Jaune upset. Finally, Weiss managed to kill the grimm, then yell at her orange-haired teammate something that Ruby didn't approve of at all. Watching Weiss stalk from the room as if she owned the place, Ruby chuckled.

Ruby caught her sisters gaze as the bell to end class rang, seeing the expression on her sister's face, Yang nodded subtly. Leaving her team after telling them she would catch up she drifted over to her sister. Ruby brightened as her sister came closer, standing still she allowed the blonde to pull her into a hug. Leading Yang to the back of the room she motioned for her to take a seat. Doing so without question the blonde grinned.

"What's up Rubes," Yang asked, she knew something was up, Ruby wouldn't leave her team for no reason after all. The blonde also had a good idea of what her sister wanted at least she hoped she did. Ruby was at times unpredictable especially when it came to new people.

"Your leader is upsetting my team," Ruby said bluntly. When Yang sighed in exasperation Ruby gave an unapologetic shrug. She had no reason to beat around the bush, although she did wonder what Yang would say if she knew Ruby had already gone through four scenarios of how to test Weiss and humble her at the same time.

Yang rubbed the back of her head nervously, yep it was about her partner. Weiss was complicated, brilliant, and Yang wasn't sure what she felt for the white-haired beauty. She did know that Ruby was extremely possessive of those she saw as hers. Ever since they were kids it'd been that way; the single time Yang had been teased by a classmate at signal during Ruby's first year the poor boy had been sent to the nurse. It was mostly around Qrow that her sister would get this way though. Most people thought Yang was the scary one but touch one hair on their uncle's head and Ruby would tear someone to shreds. If her sister was already this protective, then Weiss was screwed if she wasn't careful. Just what would Ruby say if she knew that her sister was starting to have feelings for the other girl. Would she get angry and accuse Weiss of stealing Yang away from her? Ruby's possessiveness had always been a worrying trait. Seeing Yang's look, and misunderstanding it, Ruby frowned, "I won't kill your partner, I promise."

"There's a lot you can do to her without killing her Rubes," Yang said not believing for a moment her sister would show mercy. Ruby was a strange person and sometimes Yang truly did not understand her sister. Sighing Yang became serious, "I'll talk to her."

"Thanks' sis, love you," Ruby said and gave her sister a quick hug. That would take care of the Weiss issue for the moment and give her time to plan out a nice spa trip without worrying about her newest prospective ally being slaughtered in the night by a ninja. Leaving the room, she was surprised to see Cardin waiting for her. With all these conversations she would have been late if she had any other classes today, "hello Cardin."

He smirked at the dry amusement warming the tone of her voice, "Ruby, where's your team?"

She studied him for a second, her mind going back to his teasing on the roof as she felt slightly worried. He wouldn't try to start another conversation about her crushes, would he? She really didn't want to talk about it and somehow the wicked smirk on his face didn't fill her with confidence. Sighing she gave in and motioned for him to walk with her, "at the cafeteria for supper. Is there anything you need?"

Noticing she was willing to play his game his smirk turned into a grin. Ruby really did indulge his dark side a little too much. Knowing that she would want to keep her plans secret he asked, "do you have a while to talk about our plans."

"So, they're our plans now," she asked curiously. Did he actually just sign on to be her accomplice? Seeing her expression his eyes brightened with amusement.

"Did you honestly think I would let you plot alone," he asked. Seeing her glance down at her shoes he frowned. Reached out he grabbed her shoulder gaining her attention before he said, "Your not alone anymore. As your second in command, and most likely only minion, it's my job to help you plan and plot."

"Thanks," she said her voice barely above a whisper. Gathering her thoughts, she took a deep breath before saying, "you do know your now an accomplice to all my action both legal and illegal?"

"Like I wasn't already," he said. Shrugging off whatever reservations he had, he looked around the empty hallway before asking, "Your dorm or mine?"

"Mine, this weekend. My teams waiting on me in the lunchroom. Want me to introduce you," she asked as a couple of second year students walked into view. Cardin frowned slightly; her teammates were all people he didn't actually have a problem with but still wanted to tease mercilessly. Pyrrha was too polite while Jaune was honestly a weak little brat. Blake he was pretty sure was a faunus seeing as how her bow twitched when she got emotional. He was willing to bet she was a cat too, he hated cats.

"Sure, I'll introduce you to my idiots too," he said as he began walking. Feeling her fall into step beside him he sighed a little. He just hoped his team would be accepting of the girl. People were capable of horrible things especially huntsmen in training. Once they were out of hearing range of the second years she sighed.

"I want Weiss," she said the words falling from her lips before she could stop them. Smirking as her face heated up, he chuckled.

"Personally, I think she's too pale," he teased.

"You know that's not what I meant," she hissed before he could drive her crazy.

"I know, but you should learn how to phrase sentences before you give someone the wrong idea," he advised. Nodding slowly, she silently agreed with him, in truth he was the only one she was this open around. Glancing down at her he ran a hand through his hair before saying, "you want her power, influence, and on some level, you just want her on your side. I just can't figure out if it's because Yang likes her or because she's unique."

"Both, I'll have to test her first, since she did so poorly in class," she mused. Plan A was to fight her in a one on one tournament setting where she would be forced to only rely on herself. Although it might be too public for Ruby to start offering alliance terms. Plan B was to kidnap her and drag her out to the woods to fight, although it seemed much creepy, she thought a life or death scenario would be an accurate test. She could even dress up like a murder to make it more authentic, she did know a place that sold fake blood.

"Fight the heiress," he said, and she raised an eyebrow. Rolling his eyes, he said, "I can see your overthinking everything. If you want to test her then just fight her, it's the easiest way to judge how good she actually is."

"Right," she agreed. Entering the cafeteria she stopped for a moment her eyes finding her team following her gaze Cardin smirked. Ignoring the expression Ruby started toward her team while he went to gather his own.

Blake watched her leader as the girl sat down, her entire body stiffening as Cardin walked past her. She hated the bully more than anything else and didn't know how her leader could stand him. Gritting her teeth, she allowed the emotion fade when Jaune tried to impress Pyrrha by catching a grape in his mouth. Seeing Cardin start walking over with his team, she almost hissed. As if sensing her distaste, the boy sent a smirk in her direction.

"Everyone, this is Cardin, he's my best friend," Ruby explained gaining their attention. Jaune narrowed his gaze for a moment as he gazed at the other male warily.

"I'm literally the only friend you had before coming to Beacon," Cardin teased. Sitting down beside the blonde boy, he ignored the almost glare expertly and motioned to his team saying, "These are my idiots, Russel, Dove, and Sky."

All three boys sent Cardin an unamused glower at the collective nickname he'd given them before sitting down. Ruby smiled slightly at their acceptance of the other boy's small quirk, Cardin wasn't very nice to people he didn't like and for him to only call them idiots meant he liked them a lot more than he was letting on. Stealing a grape from Jaune's hand before he could react, she tossed it at Cardin who caught it in his mouth as if it was second nature.

"Nice to meet you, my team is Blake, Pyrrha, and Jaune," she said. Ignoring their reaction to her words she turned to Jaune in excitement saying, "Jaune, tomorrow we'll start your training. I can't do any upgrades for your weapon until this weekend."

Blake snickered as her leaders' words freaked him out startling him enough that he choked on a grape. Pyrrha panicked and rushed to his aid causing her leader to laugh. Glancing up she noticed the way Cardin's eyes softened when Ruby laughed, maybe he did genuinely care about her leader, but that didn't make him trustworthy.


	8. Training

I do not own RWBY

She was grinning as she dodged Jaunes frustrated attempts to hit her. He was good for someone who hadn't had his aura unlocked for long. In fact, she would put him at the same level as a second-year Signal student if not for the fact he didn't know how to channel his aura or manipulate it in any way. It was why he would be working with the three of them extensively until he was up to a Signal graduate level, then she would pass him over to Cardin for his endurance training. She would be helping him with reflexes, Pyrrha had sword and shield training, while Blake would be working on his aura training.

His first task of the day was to catch her, something he was failing at. Dancing around the boy she tapped him on the back, as a mocking gesture. The almost exasperated whine he let out caused her to smirk as she leaned back dodging his grab and poking him in the chest at the same time.

Blake's amusement lit up her eyes as she watched her partner and leaders training. She now knew that the purpose of Jaune's training, in Ruby's mind, meant to tease him until he could no longer move. Glancing over to where Pyrrha was jotting down flaws in his form on her scroll, she raised an eyebrow at the extensive list the redhead had formed. Sharing an amused look, the two girls focused back on their male teammate when he let out a roar of anger and charged their leader. They watched as five minutes later he toppled over onto the grass. They had a lot of work to do.

Ruby giggled as he laid on the ground glaring at her, like an annoyed child. Huffing he rolled his eyes as she got her laughter under control. Ginning at her weakest teammate she sat down beside him slowly. While she wasn't tired or even winded, it was still seven in the morning on a weekend. Seeing him close his eyes she reached out her hand to poke his cheek. Stopping just short of touching him she went to pull back; he deserved some rest at least. Catching her hand, he rolled pulling the smaller girl with him. Ruby yelped shock stopping her natural reaction of stabbing without thinking.

Jaune grinned his face bright and his shaggy hair falling down to touch her nose. He pinned her easily keeping her hands beside her head as he leaned over her, "I win!"

At his joy-filled exclamation both Pyrrha and Blake burst out laughing, the amount of pride in his voice was too much for such a simple action. Ruby stared at him before her eyes narrowed. It took a moment for her brain to catch up but when it did, she pouted, "no fair."

"I thought you said when we started that fair didn't exist," he said using her own words against her. He was happy to finally get one over on his leader. The girl tilted her head as an idea popped into her head.

"So I did," she said her pout turning into a predatory smirk. Jaune didn't like the look on her face and tried to get off the girl. She captured his hands and activated her semblance sending them both crashing into the bushes as a flurry of red and gold petals. She put a lot less power into her semblance than she used it to save Pyrrha but still wasn't surprised when the boy prone to motion sickness vomited into the bushes; she almost felt guilty about it. Almost.

Jaune winced holding his stomach as she skipped away from him; she would pay for that one. Eventually, in some subtle way; like him forgetting to buy her cookies when he went shopping. Pyrrha hurried to his side rubbing his back as she blanched at the reminder of her own meeting with Ruby's semblance.

Ruby was smirking like a smug fox as she skipped to Blake's side. Jaune did make a good point about unfair fights. Humming slightly, she said, "put dirty fighting on the list of things to teach him."

The cat faunus nodded at her leader, a frown on her face. If this was how people reacted to Ruby's semblance then she really didn't want her leader to use it on her. Shivering she tried to ignore the wicked smirk on her leader's face before the sound of clapping drew her attention. Narrowing her eyes, she almost snarled at the smug expression on Cardin's face. Ignoring her completely the boy's expression changed to an almost serene grin as he caught the reaper leaping at him. Spinning her around he didn't see the confused glance shared by his team.

Placing her gently on the ground he turned his attention to Jaune who was being led to a bench by Pyrrha. He really didn't think the blonde would be able to survive a year at Beacon, but that might have been his jealously over Ruby interacting with another male. She was his best friend. As if sensing his thoughts, she sent him an amused glance; her eyes were filled with mirth as she grinned at him.

"Want to play," she asked the childish tone catching his team off guard. The word 'play' was code for training without their weapons. Tilting his head back he glanced at his team they were oblivious to what she was really asking. Looking back down at her, he could see the wicked glow in her eyes. Raising an eyebrow, he nodded before unclipping the mace from his belt and handing it to Russel. Hoping to catch her off guard he threw a punch at her chest.

Sidestepping she used his momentum to flip him onto his back before sending a crushing kick down at his head. Jaune winced his eyes widening when Cardin rolled to the left avoiding the blow that shattered the ground. Feeling Pyrrha tense beside him he glanced at her only to find her warm eyes cold and calculating. Feeling Blake come to stand at his other side he looked back at his still smirking leader.

Jumping away as Cardin grabbed at her ankles she landed in a crouch before springing off the ground. Rushing toward him she slid under his next punch as her hand grabbed his wrist; swinging her body around she aimed a kick for his face. Catching her ankle faster than Blake actually thought he could move, he swung her around his body before slamming her into the ground. Feeling something impact his wrist he let her go as he caught a glimpse of steel.

On instinct, he sidestepped as dagger cut through the air where his ankles would have been. Narrowing his eyes, he almost snarled. She was cheating again; although he wasn't surprised. Standing slowly, she twirled the weapon in her hand the mocking glow in her eyes challenging him. Lunging toward him, she shifted her grip driving the weapon toward his chest. Cursing he moved, wincing as the weapon grazed his side. Flipping followed her stab with a kick at his head, causing him to bend backward. Landing in a crouch she smirked, the expression causing his eyebrow to twitch.

"Cheater," he scolded without any real heat behind his words. When she actually had the audacity to smirk at him, he chuckled. Stepping back, he grabbed his mace from Russel's grip before charging at her.

Jaune winced at the ground of the training area shattered. Was this normal for huntsmen or were these two just monsters? The thought caused him to frown. Ruby he knew was a battle maniac but seeing her dart forward without any regard to her safety; he had to wonder if she had any self-preservation instincts at all. The challenging glow in her eyes paired with the sadistic smirk made her look like a feral animal. Tilting his head, he wondered just who his leader was to Cardin.

In the days since meeting the sadistic boy, he hadn't thought the indigo eyed man cared for anyone other than himself, yet here he was laughing while he helped Ruby ruin the training area. It was a reminder that no matter how much Ruby reminded him of his sisters, she was a warrior. He didn't even know why she was here training to be a huntress or just what she was fighting to accomplish. Sighing he ran a hand through his hair; was it right of him to trust her so easily?

He wanted to trust her more than he wanted to trust anyone. She was his leader and somehow, she made him feel safe. As if being himself was alright when his parents hadn't even believed in him. It was almost as if she was able to soothe his soul even as she tried to protect him from the world. He doubted she would ever let him down on purpose but putting too much faith in one person was foolish. Broken faith led to pain and suffering. The thought caused his eyes to darken as he turned away from the battle to look at Pyrrha. What did his teammates see when they looked at Ruby? The knowledge that their leader was hiding something from them was obvious, but he should have cared more than he actually did.

"Is this normal," he asked softly gaining his teammate's attention. Pyrrha hummed slightly but didn't take her eyes from the spar. Blake, however, glanced down at him with amused golden eyes.

"Ruby is two years our junior, yet she not only keeps up with but most likely outclasses us. While aura heals most things, I wouldn't be surprised if she was covered in scars from the training she went through to get to this level," the faunus stated. She ignored the three members of team CRDL as they came to stand beside them. Two days ago, she would have called Ruby a prodigy but somehow the term didn't fit her little leader. It felt wrong even to say she was a genius, yet she could admit part of her was still wary of Ruby. The girl in some ways reminded her of Adam; thinking of him made her sick but because of her actions instead of his.

"So, it isn't normal," he asked confused and worry tinting his voice. Blake felt her ears twitch and frowned slightly.

"The skill level Ruby has at the moment is most likely not normal for someone of her age," she stated. When he nodded in understanding she returned her attention to the spar. Behind her, the three members of team CRDL shared a look. All of them feeling slightly jealous of the amount of attention their leader gave to Ruby. They were his teammates, yet he cared more for the girl than he did them. It was insulting to know they came second to a little girl who wasn't even normal.

Gritting his teeth Russel couldn't stop himself from feeling hate for the girl. His growing crush on his leader driving his jealously to atomic levels. Part of him just wanted the girl to die or vanish from their lives. Just as the thought entered his mind, he felt cold; as Cardin glanced in his direction. The knowing look given to him by his leader caused his heart to stutter. Indigo eyes colored with cold hate tore through his soul silently warning him of what would happen should he choose to pursue his desires. Cardin wouldn't kill him, would he?

Cutting his eyes back to the battle Cardin blocked Ruby's attack with the haft of his mace. She was right about his weapon being a dumpster fire but if all else failed beating his opponents to death was always an option. As if reading his thoughts, she laughed as he shoved her away from him. Landing easily, she twisted as a blur of yellow rushed toward her. Dropping her dagger, Ruby laughed as Yang tackled her to the ground. Hugging her sister tightly Ruby returned the show of affection as Cardin hooked his mace onto his belt.

Glancing toward the entrance he smirked as Yang's team walked into the room. He could feel the slight jealousy and longing in Weiss' aura as she watched the siblings. It would make getting her on their side all the easier if she was developing a crush on Yang. Having the heiress to the SDC on their side would make their plans go smoothly.


	9. Lines in the sand

Watching Cardin beat Jaune into the ground was horrible and made her blood boil but it was necessary. Digging her nails into her palms she winced as a punch impacted the blonde's face with enough force to break his nose. The growl from beside her let he know that Blake was less than accepting of Jaune's endurance training. Part of her wanted to rush forward and stop the fight but she couldn't do anything to stop it or Jaune would never learn. All the work they'd done over the last month to get Jaune into shape was helping since he'd put up a good fight at first managing to get Cardin's aura down to half before he'd been hit in the face and been stunned. Now it was a completely one-sided fight that she knew would end with Cardin's victory.

He was merciless in his actions in a way that reminded her of herself when she fought grimm; only Cardin didn't care if he was fighting another person or a monster. He never pulled his punches, even with her. She wasn't surprised that this was how the battle was turning out. Seeing him stop his mace only millimeters from Jaune's face as the boy's aura broke, she sighed in relief. Hearing the snickers of the other students she considered slicing them into pieces for laughing at her teammate. Luckily, she didn't have to since her partner took care of it. The sound of Pyrrha gritting her teeth was almost audible as the redhead turned a flaming glare on their classmates.

Unaware of his teammate's actions, Jaune groaned as every part of his body hurt. He could barely hear Glynda announcing the end of class since the sound of his bones scraping against each other was too loud. Opening his eyes, he raised an eyebrow as Cardin offered him a hand. He was pretty sure that the boy was taunting him but still, he reached up. When the other male grabbed his hand instead of pulling away Jaune blinked for a moment. His other arm throbbed as he was pulled to his feet.

"You alright Charming," Cardin asked amusement in his voice. Rolling his eyes Jaune gave a half-hearted nod. Which was honestly more than Cardin was expecting him to give; he'd thought the boy would just fall over and groan in pain for the next few moments.

"What happened to holding back," Ruby questioned once she'd made it down to where they were standing. Her arms were crossed as she turned a glare on Cardin, who wasn't at all phased by her current annoyance.

"I didn't hurt him that badly," Cardin argued although the amused smirk on his face didn't really help his point. The fact Jaune chose that moment to let out a pained groan was enough to turn Pyrrha's attention to the mace wielder.

"You broke his arm," Pyrrha snapped her eyes blazing. Looking into her enraged green eyes Cardin almost laughed. She could act angry all she wanted but it didn't disguise the fact she was more concerned than anything else.

"At least now you get to play doctor," he teased. Watching her face match her hair he laughed the sound filling the space around them. It wasn't every day that a famous fighter fell for someone who didn't even know how to take a beating.

Ruby felt her lips twitch into a smile as Pyrrha huffed and turned her attention to Jaune. She knew her partner was embarrassed, and it amused her how easily Cardin could get under someone's skin without even trying; it was a special talent. She had no doubt he had cultivated his semblance to the point where people didn't even know the difference between their normal emotions and his enhancements. While her semblance was flashy, his was subtle unless he stopped holding back. Unfortunately, cries of insanity were hardly subtle and most people noticed when someone started screaming.

As if hearing her thoughts Cardin snorted amusement leaking off him as his team walked to his side. Taking a chance to look them over Ruby was surprised at the look of hate Russel threw in her direction. Raising an eyebrow, she dared the boy to attack her; it would be fun to play around with him for a bit. Sensing her intent he shuffled putting Cardin between them as a shield. Rolling her eyes at his cowardice she turned her attention back to her teammates.

"How bad is it," she asked watching Blake examine Jaune.

"He'll have to see the nurse," the faunus stated. Her eyes flickering between Ruby who was now glaring at Cardin once again and Pyrrha who was cooing over Jaune. Now the blonde boy looked ready to run away and never come back. If Pyrrha didn't stop looking like she was considering throwing Jaune over her shoulder like a cavewoman, then Blake would join him in escaping their crazy team.

"Right well you see to Charming, Ruby's going to help me with my team," Cardin announced before he began pulling the girl toward his teammates. It was more so she could yell at him some more than deal with his teammates. Although he had no idea what to do with them either. Throwing a look between them her team narrowed their gaze on the boy.

"Don't worry I'll meet you guy's back at the dorm," Ruby stated taking their attention off Cardin.

The boy seemed more than happy to antagonize her team; she really didn't want to deal with that today. Sensing her exasperation Cardin shooed off her team getting glares in return. Watching the three leave she waited until they were out of sight to stomp on his foot. Putting enough force in the action to make him wince. Almost snarling at him she shoved him back causing Russel to yelp as he dodged his leader's body.

"What the hell? I told you not to hurt him too badly," she snapped her eyes blazing as he straightened.

"Compared to the training we went through, your puppy is fine," he said. The lack of fear he felt toward her was clearly shown in his smirk. Faltering Ruby frowned her anger fading as she processed his words. She knew that if it was her father training him then Jaune most likely wouldn't have been able to walk the next morning let alone right after.

"Fine, but no more broken bones," she said. Nodding in agreement, if only to make her feel better, he turned his attention to his team who had watched them with widened eyes.

"So, about my team, got any ideas, "he asked as they flinched. Seeing the look, they threw each other he grinned the expression just short of wicked.

Ruby frowned, crossing her arms she studied them. Russel and Sky were speed fighters while Dove was built like a tank. If they focused on weapon skills and teamwork then maybe they would be able to support Cardin in battle, although she doubted, they would manage to get up to his or her level in the next few weeks. It might take three months, but they could probably be whipped into shape or at least form some semblance of a support system for her friend.

She would have fun playing around with them, especially Russel who still hadn't stopped glaring at her yet. Seriously what was his problem? It was starting to annoy her, and he wasn't one of the people she would be wary of beating into the ground. Sensing her annoyance, Cardin glanced between her and his team.

He knew that his team didn't really like her, Russel especially, but he had no idea how to fix that. While telling them the truth was an option, he didn't really want to admit that she was his only friend. Well in truth she was the only person who had never been afraid of him something that not even his team could boast. Turning his attention back to Ruby when she patted his arm, he noted the way Russel's emotions flared toward jealously.

"I'll have a training schedule for them by tomorrow, do you mind if I invite Yang's team to joint training," she asked her eyes wide and pleading.

Cardin tensed. Saying that he and Yang were not friends, was like admitting that cats didn't like water. They literally hated each other; only putting up with each other for Ruby. Still, he would rather beat Yang with a fire extinguisher than talk to the blonde. In his defense it wasn't his fault, the girl just hated him for some reason. He doubted anything he could do would stop her from wanting to kill him. Knowing that Ruby wanted to include her sister, who was actually her cousin, in their training was almost insulting. Rubbing his forehead as she turned her puppy eyes on him, he sighed.

"Fine," he agreed. Cheering she wasted no time hugging him tightly before rushing away to presumably find Yang. Puppy eyes were an unfair advantage in their relationship. Hearing Russel shift on his feet, Cardin turned his attention back to his own team.

Finding her sister in the Gym wasn't that surprising for Ruby since Yang kept a strict schedule. She would have been more unnerved if her sister wasn't in her usual training spot pummeling a dummy into the ground. She knew that training always made her sister feel better after sitting through classes.

Seeing her sister beat the dummy with both her arms caused Ruby's eyes to narrow. At the Fall of Beacon Yang would have lost an arm due to her reckless actions. Knowing that she'd tried to temper her sister's reckless attitude but had made no progress. Her sister was willful as such Ruby would ensure that she was far from Adam during the Fall. Especially when she herself wanted to test the faunus; she had a bad habit of wanting to fight people who should be stronger than her.

Adam, however, was different than Roman. With the thief, she wanted to fight him for fun, with Adam she didn't quite know how to approach him. In canon, he was Blake's mentor, and maybe even her lover, but for now, she'd see no signs of such a relationship. Perhaps asking outright would be better but somehow, she doubted Blake would appreciate her asking about a man she shouldn't even know existed.

Still, the way Blake looked at her sometimes reminded her of how her father looked at her. She reminded the faunus of someone and she was willing to bet it was Adam. Deciding to put her thoughts and theories on hold she jolted as a hand patted her head.

"Ruby is there a reason you've been staring at me for the last five minutes," Yang asked an amused smile on her face. Blinking Ruby forced her thoughts back to reality.

"Yes," she admitted but didn't continue. Seeing the mischievous spark in her sister's eyes Yang felt a bit unsettled.

"Are you going to tell me what it is," she asked.

"I intend to fight your leader," Ruby stated without hesitation. Watching Yang carefully she noticed her sister's lilac eyes fill with annoyance. The overprotective expression that colored her sister's gaze was amusing however the way her fists clenched was not.

"You said you'd let me handle it," Yang hissed confusion and anger seeping into her voice. Ruby knew that her sister had a crush on Weiss but for her to grow attached in such a short time wasn't good. Her sister had a habit of throwing herself into situations without thinking and she doubted the blonde had even noticed how deep her own feelings for the heiress ran.

"I want to test her," Ruby admitted. She was hoping that telling the truth would dull her sister's temper but instead, the blonde seemed to grow even more annoyed.

"For what," she snapped. The last time Ruby had tested someone had ended with the boy's face down on the ground in pain. Apparently, he hadn't even passed the test, the only one who'd ever passed was Cardin, and now her sister wanted to hurt Weiss. She wouldn't allow her leader to be hurt by anyone especially not her little sister. Crossing her arms, she asked, "What could possibly be so important that you would put Weiss in danger?"

"I won't hurt her," Ruby said calmly. She didn't let her sister see how hurt she was by Yang's annoyance. Would it be too much for the girl to just trust her this once?

"I doubt you'd notice if you did," Yang said the cold tone catching Ruby off guard. Staring at her sister she couldn't stop the jolt of anger that she felt.

"Yang," she warned daring her sister to continue. She loved Yang but sometimes the blonde pushed all the wrong buttons.

"No, your stronger than Weiss and I refuse to let you hurt her," Yang said. Ruby felt her eyebrow twitch and tried not to show just how annoyed she was but when Yang started toward the door of the gym she snapped.

"Get your crush under control and listen to me! I give you my word that I won't hurt Weiss beyond what's necessary to test her abilities!"

The words caused her sister to stop right before she left the gym. Turning slowly Ruby held back a wince when she looked into her sister's blazing red eyes. Yang was far to angered to even consider her sister's words now.

"That's not good enough," Yang snapped before heading back to her dorm. She didn't see the look of shock and pain that crossed Ruby's face before the girl's mask slid back into place. Closing her eyes Ruby let out a strained breath. Taking a moment to get her emotions under control she hoped her sister would forgive her for what she was going to do.


	10. Answers and Plots

She'd seen Yang angry before today. It was one of her sister's easiest reached emotions, so she wasn't really surprised when her sister snapped at her. She was surprised at the level of protectiveness the older girl felt toward Weiss. Given that they'd only met less than two months ago. No one should grow that attached in a short amount of time; it was irrational, or maybe she was just biased. After all the last time she grew attached to someone romantically he left her to die. She doubted Weiss would just leave Yang to die; it didn't make her any less worried though.

Running a hand through her hair she stared at her dorm room door for a long moment before entering slowly. Ruby was surprised to see her team already there; she'd figured Jaune's nurse visit would take longer than it had. Pyrrha was cuddling beside Jaune who seemed to be almost sleeping but was too nervous to close his eyes. His arm was already healed, which was lucky for him seeing as how the sleeping redhead was clinging to it. Smirking at the pleading look he sent her she turned her attention to Blake who had looked up from the book she was reading. Raising an eyebrow in question she grinned when the faunus simply shrugged. She could see the tension in the other girl's shoulders. She'd known there would be questions after she sent them away in favor of talking to Cardin. From the piercing gaze being directed at her, Ruby could tell Blake was ready to interrogate her about everything related to the boy.

"I assume you want answers," she asked eying the older girl cautiously. When Blake nodded, she bit her lip slightly. Answering questions about Cardin when the boy wasn't even here was not something, she was willing to do. But if she got him here there was a chance that he'd start a fight with her team. Sighing she pulled her scroll from her pocket as she ordered, "Jaune wake up Pyrrha, Blake you get the secrets nest ready, I'll message Cardin and his team."

Jaune looked panicked as he hovered his hand over Pyrrha's shoulder his eyes widened in the realization that he would have to touch her to wake her up. Given the fact that she was currently clinging to his arm, it should have been less terrifying but somehow that fact only made it worse. Much worse. Taking the opportunity to mess with the knight Blake gripped the end of the blanket they were laying on a dark smirk forming on her face. Without giving him time to realize what she was doing the faunus pulled.

The action caused Ruby to giggle as Jaune and Pyrrha were sent tumbling to the floor. Watching their antics she felt her smile fade. Was this truly what she wanted? She knew she could trust Cardin with her life and secrets, but could she trust her team? To her it was all or nothing; they would know everything about her from now till she died. They would be her family; if she did this then a single betrayal on their part might break her. Even thinking about allowing herself to be vulnerable scared her more than anything else in the world.

Feeling her scroll buzz in her hand she glanced down at it. Cardin and his team were on their way; he wanted to know if she was going to tell them everything. Looking down at the message Cardin had sent her she didn't know what to do. She cared about her team yet there was part of her that felt terrified for even considering telling them about both her reincarnation and plans for the future. Making a choice she sent a quick denial. She would tell them later.

"Cardin and his team will be here soon," she announced startling Pyrhha awake. Apparently being tossed to the floor hadn't done anything other than cause the redhead to cling to Jaune even more. The poor boy looked insanely uncomfortable with the entire situation. It was adorable; especially when Pyrrha simply smiled when she realized their position. Blake nodded yet didn't seem all to pleased at the idea of him entering their dorm.

"Why do you care about him so much," Jaune asked confusion and curiosity in his voice. As far as he knew Cardin was a cruel bully who didn't seem to tolerate anyone other than Ruby. He was pretty sure that the other boy didn't even like most people. At the question, Blake shifted her own curiosity clouding her eyes.

Ruby hummed as she moved to sit down on the pile of blankets that made up their secrets nest. Motioning for them to join her she considered the best way to answer their question. She couldn't very well tell them that he was the only person outside her family that she trusted. That would be a little too truthful.

"We've been friends since I started going to Signal," she said. Seeing them exchange a quick glance she knew that she hadn't actually answered their question. If they wanted to know more about Cardin, then they would have to wait until he actually arrived. She refused to talk about him behind his back as if he was some kind of criminal.

"He's a bullying, racist, jerk who beat Jaune into the dirt today," Blake snapped her eyes narrowing on her leader. At each word, Ruby twitched slightly her easy-going smile fading into a cold frown as she stared back at the faunus. Shivering at the expression Jaune shifted putting distance between him and the two girls; this consequently placed him right next to Pyrrha.

Ruby was barely holding back a growl. Part of her knew that Blake was right; while she might have stopped some of Cardin's more violent tendencies, he still hated the faunus and made no move to hide that fact. Yet she understood why he hated them, unlike Blake who simply judged based on what she saw. Cardin wasn't perfect, but he was her best friend, the attack on him was causing her to bristle. Before Ruby could verbally tear Blake into tiny pieces there was a knock on the door.

Taking the opportunity to put any kind of distance between him and the two girls, Jaune bolted to the door without hesitation. Opening it slowly the scent of cookies assaulted his nose. The large plate held in Cardin's hand was the first thing he saw before noticing the amusement in the taller boy's eyes. Grinning sheepishly Jaune stepped back to allow the boy and his team entry into the room. Briefly, he noticed the black tank top and red sweatpants the boy was wearing before shrugging it off. After all, they were done with classes for the day; the only issue was that he'd never seen Cardin wearing any kind of casual clothing. Entering slowly the boy raised an eyebrow at the tense set of Blake's shoulders and the darkening glare in Ruby's eyes before rolling his eyes.

"Little Rose, I brought cookies," he announced stalking to the nest. Brightening almost instantly Ruby turned her attention to him and held out her hands expectantly. Instead of handing it over he simply stared down at her with amusement as he said, "You get the cookies after you change out of your uniform."

Pyrrha barely saw the pout form on Ruby's face before the girl was gone in a flurry of rose petals; the bathroom door slamming shut behind her. Watching Cardin's team sit down on the nest she noticed that the three boys were oddly tense as they glanced at their leader with mortified expressions. Sharing a quick look with Jaune as he sat back down, she wondered just what was wrong with them.

She could barely hear him, but Cardin was counting. His voice was barely above a whisper and if not for her ears Blake wouldn't have heard him at all. Hearing him reach zero she felt a breeze as Ruby reappeared as if she'd never left. Wearing a dark red hoody way to big for her and black shorts the girl was holding out her hands expectantly. Passing over the plate he sat down beside her not caring about the glare Blake leveled in his direction.

"So, who wants to start the interrogation," Ruby asked as she stuffed a cookie in her mouth. Chuckling as the action made her look like a chipmunk, Cardin motioned to his team who seemed to shift away from him.

"My idiots have something to tell you," he stated. It wasn't anything other than a threat and all three of them noticed it along with the subtle anger in his voice. They weren't surprised after all he did catch them in the middle of listing the pros and cons of blowing up his best friend. Turning her attention to them Ruby tilted her head and waited. She didn't have to wait long before Russel broke the silence.

"We were planning to kill you," he blurted out.

For a moment the world was silent as everyone processed his statement. There wasn't any regret or guilt in their eyes; they weren't sorry for plotting but for getting caught. Hearing a low growl Ruby glanced at Blake who was glaring at them in hate while Pyrrha and Jaune stared at them in horror. Ruby knew that she should've been angry, it was the normal reaction yet all she felt was amusement. Nibbling on another cookie she studied the determined set of Russel's shoulders as the boy stared back at her without hesitation. There was also something else in his eyes too; jealousy. He was jealous of her relationship with Cardin. Was it wrong she wanted to laugh? She didn't blame them for being jealous of her relationship with Cardin, to anyone who didn't know them the relationship would seem romantic.

"Wait so all three of you were plotting my death," She asked looking between the three boys. When they simply shared an uneasy glance, she frowned slightly. Shrugging her shoulders in casual acceptance she asked, "did you at least have a plan"

Cardin twitched at the question gaining Blake's attention. The expression of pure amusement on his face couldn't have been fake especially when he held back a chuckle. Narrowing her eyes her gaze flickered between him and Ruby. Shouldn't the girl be angry that they were going to try to kill her?

"They were talking about blowing you up when I caught them," Cardin admitted as his hand wandered toward the plate of cookies in her lap. Slapping his hand away without even looking she frowned.

"Blowing someone up is messy, please tell me you had a better idea than that," she pleaded. When Russel seemed to lose the ability to speak she sighed. Exasperation and disappointment filling the sound as she turned her attention to Cardin asking, "what have you been teaching them?"

"How to commit murder hasn't come up yet," he said without hesitation. The look of complete despair on Ruby's face was almost comical before she passed him the now empty plate.

"Alright, since Cardin has been neglecting your training," she said before shooting Cardin a look when he snickered. Raising his hands in surrender he leaned back to watch the impending lecture causing her to smirk. Turning her attention to the three boys she said, "I'll give a brief lesson on how to properly kill someone."

It was chaos. Sitting frozen Blake could only watch in growing horror as Ruby gave a detailed lesson on how to commit murder. First, she outlined the process of knowing their target and planning the action, something that was way too detailed to be just an example. That was the first moment she noticed the steady paling of Jaune's face and the way Pyrrha was paying far too much attention to the lecture. Then the girl told them about picking the best weapon to suit the situation. When the girl mentioned timed explosions, Cardin grinned in a way that set Blake's instincts on edge. Lastly Ruby told them about picking a correct time and place for their murder. Was that a notepad in Pyrrha's hand? The redhead was taking notes. Her entire team was insane.

"I want to go home now," Jaune muttered as Ruby finished her lecture. Clapping her hands in excitement Ruby ignored him completely.

"Now what would be the best way to kill me," she asked a wide grin on her face. When Dove raised his hand nervously, she almost hopped in place. She could hear Cardin chuckling as she motioned for the boy to speak.

"P-poison your cookies," he suggested a little fear leaking into his voice. What the hell was this girl? They told her they'd been planning to kill her, and she gives them a lecture on murder. He didn't understand her at all.

"Nope, I only take cookies from people I trust," she stated. The words causing Blake to send a tiny glare toward Cardin who was now smirking.

"I have an idea," Pyrrha said starling Jaune who gave her a terrified glance. Ignoring his horrified whisper of her name she said, "I would surprise you and use a quiet weapon so you wouldn't see it coming."

"Clever, but what weapon," Ruby asked curiously. Tilting her head she said, "if it's too big you can't conceal it and the po-"

"A dagger coated in a poison that stops your aura. I was going to stab you and leave you for dead during the field trip to Forever Fall," Russel said cutting into the conversation. He thought the words would cause her to flinch away or look startled but instead, she seemed almost happy he'd spoken up. Somehow, he hated her more for the smile on her face than anything else.

Cardin snorted the sound gaining all their attention; his indigo eyes meeting Ruby's for a moment. They both knew that unless they cleared their air neither of their teams would trust each other. She could see a silent question in his eyes and gave a subtle nod. With her permission to go wild he leaned back on his hands wondering where he should start. Part of him didn't even want to tell them anything. It was none of their business what his relationship with Ruby was but if she wanted to try trusting them then he would too.

"I met Ruby her first year at Signal; she was immediately the most interesting person around," he said his eyes never leaving hers. Dark curiosity swirled in her eyes and he chuckled before saying, "needless to say we became very close very fast. She was the only one to hold my attention longer than a day."

"You mean I was the only one that you didn't accidentally break with your semblance," she corrected. Nodding in agreement he couldn't keep the sadistic smirk from his face. Seeing the disbelieving expression on Blake's face, he sighed the expression fading. He'd hoped to break the ice just a little but if anything, the girl seemed to dislike him even more for his comment. Did the kitty cat not understand humor at all?

He could see the cat was looking for a fight. He didn't want to fight with the girl especially not when he was trying to be nice. Running a hand through his hair he sat up his eyes leaving Ruby's for the first time since he'd started talking. There were so many things that he wanted to say to Blake but none of them were kind. Resting his head in his hand he sighed suddenly feeling exhausted.

"I was alone," he said softly. The words driving the room to silence. Hearing the sharp intake of breath from Ruby he allowed a rueful smile to cross his face even though they couldn't see it. Just for Ruby, he would be honest just this once. Glancing up he met Blake's eyes knowing that the girl was a faunus. Feeling Ruby rest, a gentle hand on his shoulder he said, "My mother was a huntress; she died trying to stop a White Fang attack after that my father spiraled. To make it worse I could suddenly feel the negative emotions of everyone around me and amplify them. I c-c-"

"You don't have to," Ruby whispered just loud enough he could hear her. Cutting his eyes away from Blake he saw the concern in her eyes. He'd already told her everything about his past and the reason he lived alone. Instead of answering he wrapped an arm around her waist before pulling her onto his lap. Holding her like a teddy bear he rested his chin on her shoulder the look of pure hate Blake sent him was more than worth it.

"I accidentally amplified my father's negative emotions causing him to commit suicide," he stated. There was no hesitation in his voice, but he did tighten his grip on the girl in his lap. Feeling her hands rest over his as she leaned against him, he was grateful for her presence. If not for her he would have broken years ago. Feeling her begin to tape a pattern on his hand he said, "I was drawn to Ruby due to her chaotic emotions."

"My emotions were not chaotic," she denied although they both knew that he was telling the truth. Pouting slightly, she looked away as the others sent them a strange glance.

"In the beginning, I was going to break her down, but I decided not to, after all, it's not every day someone finds out I'm an empath and laughs about it," he said catching them all off guard. They would have thought that the two were friends from the instinct they met. Grinning at his team he said, "so, Ruby is like my little sister now; a sister that still hasn't learned her lesson about knocking. Which given the fact she entered my room while I wa-"

"I WILL END YOU!"

The screech was all the warning he had before she slammed the back of her head into his nose causing him to release her. Blushing vividly Ruby wasted no time tackling Pyrrha who instantly patted her back. The reaper's face was both mortified and embarrassed as she hugged her partner tightly while ignoring Cardin's laughter.


	11. Red and White

Somehow, they'd all managed to fall asleep on the floor creating a large puppy pile in the center of the room. With their limbs tangled together, no one could move without waking everyone else. Which was the predicament that Ruby currently found herself in as she stared at the ceiling. She'd woken up two hours ago and now she was simply running her fingers over Blake's ears as she waited for the others to awaken. She was happy. It was hard for her to connect her old life to the one she had now, but she did know that she was happy here. In this life, she had friends, family, people who cared about her without wanting to use her. It felt nice, yet there was so much she had to deal with. Cinder and the White Fang were at the top of the list. Especially since they were going to try destroying Beacon, however, there was also Ozpin to consider. Would he still try making Pyrrha the fall Maiden?

The thought soured her good mood. If Pyrrha tried to become the Fall Maiden, then Cinder would kill her instantly. She could understand Cinder's reasoning too since power was truly one of the only things that mattered in this world. Still, if the woman tried, she would tear her into pieces. Feeling Blake nuzzle against her neck Ruby sighed. The White Fang was also an issue, but she didn't have any connections that could help deal with them unless she used Blake. Which wasn't an option. She wasn't him; she couldn't just use people and throw them away as if they were nothing. It wasn't in her to let go of the people and things that she cared about just to accomplish her goal.

There was so much she couldn't do to stop the coming disaster. Well, she could tell Ozpin, but she didn't trust him right now. Not with all the variables she didn't know. Such as his connection with the pale woman from the end of volume three. All she knew was that he had become the youngest headmaster in history and that her family trusted him. She was willing to bet that her mother had trusted him too; while he might not have anything to do with her mother's death she couldn't let go of the possibility. Her father, bless his heart, was too trusting and her dad was simply naive. The only person who could possibly shed light on the situation was Raven. Yet she had no idea where the woman was, however, her father would. They were siblings and no matter how much time passed family was family. There had to be a reason that Raven left; she hoped that reason would lead her to answers.

What could she do about Cinder and her team? Killing them wasn't an option, and not just because they were some of her favorite characters. She wanted them on her side. She wanted their support and their power. But mostly she wanted people around her that were just as willing to kill as she was. Hesitation leads to death; she refused to allow anyone she'd chosen to die. She wouldn't allow anyone to take what was hers; not now or ever.

Cinder had proven to be an excellent manipulator and strategist when she brought Beacon to its knees. The woman's strength had been impressive even before she gained the power of the Fall Maiden but with that power, she was a force of nature. Cinder was someone who would accomplish great things even if those things were horrible as well. Knowing that Ruby could honestly say that she wanted the woman to be her general. On a more personal note, Cinders motivations were something that Ruby could understand completely. If a person was strong and feared, then no one would hurt them; no one could hurt them.

Emerald was simply useful. Her semblance was incredibly unique and while she used it to destroy Penny in canon; that didn't make it any less interesting. Then there was the girl's sense of loyalty too. It was rare to find someone who held the same sense of loyalty to someone that Emerald held for Cinder. Ruby knew what that kind of loyalty could do to a person if mishandled and just how bad it would hurt if that loyalty was betrayed.

Mercury was…In truth, he was the only one she completely understood out of Cinder's team. While she admired Emerald's sense of loyalty and Cinder's longing for power, she knew what it was like to be broken by the people who were supposed to love and nurture her. As Alice, she'd been betrayed and hurt by everyone in her life until she welcomed death. There had been no one for her to cling to; knowing Mercury's backstory, well what pieces she had, the girl could infer that he might have had a similar upbringing. She wanted him on her side because he was strong in a way that Cinder and Emerald were not. He was someone she knew could become a player in this world, all he needed was someone willing to give him a foundation. She hoped that was Cinder; surely the woman she wanted on her side wouldn't be foolish enough to dismiss Mercury's potential.

Neo and Roman were two people who she'd already decided to save. And not just because she wanted them on her side but because when she was fighting Roman it was fun. He was fun. A person that she could be around without putting on a polite mask and hoping that everyone accepted that she was a good little girl. She wanted people that accepted her; maybe Neo and Roman could be those people. And as Cardin had so elegantly put it, she had a minor crush on Roman; Neo was cute too.

Adam was the problem. All the others she could safely say would be easy to sway to her side, but he was different. Her relationship with Blake made things complicated. He would try to hurt her kitten and she couldn't allow that, yet she didn't want to kill him because he interested her. He was a faunus who obviously had connections to the SDC. It was obvious he was willing to kill as well as fight for his people. That kind of tenacity could be insanely useful especially if she gained his loyalty. Plus, he was amazing to look at although she did wonder what color his eyes were. She hoped they were blue and not gold. She had a small weakness for blue eyes.

"Your thinking too loud," Cardin whispered from his place at her feet. He'd somehow managed to prop himself up against her bed and was currently running a hand through Russel's hair idly. Glancing at him she frowned softly.

It was strange to see Cardin acting so gentle with someone other than herself, yet she didn't feel jealous. The only issue was that he was unable to show approval to anyone who hadn't gained his respect and the only thing Russel had done so far was getting a spot on his team. Cardin wouldn't act gentle with the other boy while he was awake. it amused her greatly. Especially when he pretended not to care at all and somehow, she doubted that he would admit to liking his team anytime soon.

"I know," she whispered. Turning her eyes back to the ceiling she wondered what time it was right now.

"Want to tell me?"

"I don't know what to do about the future," she admitted. The words catching him off guard for a second before he scoffed. She was always trying to solve everything but sometimes she forgot that she was one person, and no one could save the world alone. It just wasn't possible to fix everything without breaking something. But that was one of the things he loved about her; his stubborn, foolish, conniving, little sister.

"Then focus on the present," he said. Tilting his head slightly he smirked saying "Your fight with Weiss is happening today."

"Right."

"Your first chance to sway her to your side," he elaborated. This was much more than a simple sparring match; it was a test. Neither of them noticed Blake's ears twitch as she started to wake up.

"Yep."

"Yang is attached to the heiress," he reminded. Seeing her wince, he smirked. It would be fun to watch Yang self-destruct. He loved messing with the blonde.

"True."

"She's going to be pissed that you're fighting her girlfriend," he said. Ruby twitched her expression changing to mortified for a long moment as she processed his words. Then she scoffed.

"They're not dating yet," she stated. The lack of amusement in her tone making him smile. She'd always been protective of her sister despite being the younger one. She supposed it was because she'd never had a sister in her old life.

"Yet, being the keyword," he told her. Eye twitching Ruby frowned for a moment the expression causing him to smirk.

"My sister in law is going to be a Schnee isn't she," she asked defeat in her tone. While she liked Weiss as a person she didn't know if the girl was good enough for her sister.

"That depends on how long their relationship lasts," he said giving her hope then immediately crushing it when he said, "But yes, that is a likely outcome."

"Shut up and sleep," Blake growled cutting into their conversation. Tightening her grip on Ruby she resisted the urge to kick out at Cardin when he snickered. Feeling her leader giggle and pet her ears she purred softly. Closing her eyes Ruby smiled leaning her head against Blake's.

(Tyrian)

Licking the blood off his cheek he chuckled amusement written on his face as he dropped the severed arm to the ground. The groan that filled the air was pure music to his ears especially when it was followed by the shriek from the woman currently huddled on the bed a few feet away. A cold wind blew into the room from the open window he'd used to enter, and he couldn't stop himself from chuckling.

"W-Why a-"

"I'm looking for someone," Tyrian admitted. He had to cage his longing to tug the simpering man's eyes from his skull. Sadly, he needed the idiot coherent to get his information and given the fact he'd just cut off the man's arm he didn't have much time before the fool would pass out from the pain. Rolling his shoulders Tyrian kneeled his hand reaching out to grab the other man's chin as he asked, "about nine years ago you were in a relationship with a certain woman. Where is she now?"

The fear that filled the man's eyes was mixed with realization and hate. Neither of which was directed at the man currently torturing. His dark eyes narrowed at the memory of the freak he'd left behind. The woman who tricked him by hiding her supernatural powers. He hated her more than anything else in the world because she shouldn't even exist. Someone like her was against the laws of nature.

"I don't' know, but you should, freaks attract freaks don't they," he spat. Tyrian frowned as he saw the honesty in the man's gaze. So, this weakling didn't know where he could find his prey. How annoying; now he would have to track the girl manually. But first, he had to clean up his current mess. Moving to fast for the man to follow his tail lashed out grabbing the man by the neck. Lifting him up slowly Tyrian chuckled as the man clawed at the appendage.

Tightening his grip, he considered strangling he man to death before his hand snapped out catching the brush that the man's wife had tossed at his head. Looking down at the makeshift weapon he rolled his eyes his good mood vanishing. Boredom clouded his eyes as he jerked his tail to the side snapping the man's neck easily. Glaring at the woman for interrupting his fun he dropped the body before stalking toward her his wrist blades sliding into place.

(Ruby)

Seeing the unamused glare on Yang's face Ruby groaned as they entered combat class. Looking over at the unsuspecting white-haired girl she winced. Yang was going to kill her. Although she doubted her sister could. She wasn't guilty that she was going to fight Yang's girlfriend. But she was guilty because Yang didn't want her to fight Weiss in the first place. No matter how much fun she was going to have testing the Schnee heiress she would still have to deal with Yang's overprotective nature once the fight was over. She blamed Raven for Yang's protectiveness over the people she loved. When she saw Glynda she made her escape saying, "I'm going to go set up my match now."

"Be careful," Cardin told the girl as she passed him causing her to stop seeing her roll her eyes he smirked. They both knew the only way Weiss could hurt her was if she held back but since today was a test, she wouldn't still just to annoy her he said, "and don't hold back."

"Too bad it's not you that I'm fighting," she said, excitement entering her eyes for a moment. They hadn't had a true spar in so long and she missed fighting with him. He chuckled mirroring her expression as he leaned back in his seat: they both knew that a fight between them would be explosive. It would most likely destroy the arena as well.

"Maybe next time," he told her. The smirk that blossomed across her face mirrored his perfectly as they both ignored his annoyed team. While they might not hate her anymore that didn't change the fact that she took all their leader's attention when she was around. Giving him one last amused glance, she walked down to the arena where Glynda was standing.

When the woman looked up from her scroll Ruby placed an innocent smile on her face and told the woman her request. Telling Glynda she wanted to have a duel with Weiss caused the woman to seem almost ecstatic. Apparently, the blonde had planned on having them fight all along, but Ruby had sped up her plans. Which given what she knew about Glynda had probably both amused and annoyed the woman. Ruby felt amused at the entire situation.

Keeping her weapon sheathed on her back Ruby studied the heiress her eyes running over the girl. Weiss obviously knew how to use her weapon which was something Ruby had already known but the determination shining in the girl's eyes was interesting. The girl was a leader now and she must know what that entailed. Had becoming the leader of her team changed the heiress in some way? She would have fun finding out.

As their professor talked about having an honorable fight Ruby felt her lips twitch in amusement. She could imagine Glynda memorizing this speech in her office before every class since the woman herself sounded annoyed with the words that were leaving her lips. It was likely that the woman wanted to tell them a very real truth that Ruby already knew; in the real world there was no such thing as an honorable fight, there were those that survived and those that did not.

Sensing her opponent's amusement, the heiress frowned thinking that she was underestimating her and internally vowing to make the smaller girl regret that decision. Eyes narrowing Weiss lunged first not giving the younger girl a chance to draw her scythe; she'd seen Ruby's fights before and knew that she had to end this quickly. If she didn't then the girl would most likely beat, her into the dirt.

Cardin loved watching Ruby fight. Not only did she move like a dancer, but her eyes lit up in a way that they never did anywhere else. He didn't know if it had something to do with her being reincarnated or simply her bloodline but seeing those warm silver eyes darken to harden steel was an amazing sight. Leaning forward he watched her closely as the heiress got closer his eyes focusing on her hands; Ruby had a bad habit of twitching her fingers before she countered an attack. As he suspected her fingers twitched an instant before the heiress reached her.

Sidestepping in a motion that was followed by floating petals Ruby dodged the rapier easy before she caught the girl's arm. Seeing surprise enter Weiss' eyes Ruby smirked her leg lashing out and impacting the girl's chest. Kicking Weiss away she unfolded Crescent Rose and aimed the weapon behind her. Pressing the trigger, she flew forward her eyes never leaving Weiss as the girl tried to right herself in mid-air. Landing on her feet Weiss stumbled before stabbed her weapon into the floor to steady herself. Throwing out her hand she narrowed her eyes as a golden glyph appeared under Ruby before the girl was surrounded by black glyphs.

Clever, Weiss certainly wasn't someone to be underestimated. Although the strategy was one that everyone would have expected of the girl given what she used her semblance for in class. The girl was predictable and that could get her killed. However, the only way for the girl to figure out that fact was through experience, so she would show Weiss exactly why her plan was flawed.

Feeling her body slow down Ruby stabbed the bladed pummel of her scythe into the floor. Sending the other girl, a mocking smirk she watched confusion turn to anger as the girl snarled before reacting exactly as expected. Watching Weiss as the girl lunged forward, she allowed her smirk to vanish as if it never existed before sidestepping and reaching out. Feeling her eye twitch Ruby grabbed Weiss by the back of her jacket when she passed and activated her semblance. Grinning as they appeared outside the glyph barrier, she released the girl and kicked her away. Weiss growled before using a glyph to increase her speed and she went shooting at the reaper's chest.

Vanishing in a burst of petals Ruby landed beside her weapon and plucked the giant scythe from the ground easily before glancing upward as Weiss bounced off another glyph.

Spinning Crescent Rose, she knocked the rapier to the side and hit Weiss in the back. The girl stumbled but spun around fast enough to duck under the scythe blade. Weiss felt her blue eyes widen in surprise as she allowed the polished metal to pass over her head. Flipping away from the smaller girl she parried the bladed pummel causing sparks to fly. Meeting dark silver eyes, she frowned as the weapon impacted the floor behind her and broke through it. Instead of pulling out her weapon Ruby used it as an anchor as she slid forward her foot heading for the white-haired girl's face.

Rolling to avoid the attack Weiss brushed her weapon against the ground sending a wave of ice in Ruby's direction. Following the tide of ice, the heiress noticed Ruby's eyes glow with amusement before the girl tugged her weapon from the floor ass if it was a feather. Spinning the weapon around her Ruby cut through the wave of ice before blocking Weiss' thrust easily. Feeling the metal of the rapier brush against her face she grinned. Her aura kept her from being injured but she'd seen enough. Twisting her scythe in her hands she forced Weiss to jump away before lunging forward leaving a spiderweb crack in the floor where she'd been standing. Realizing the danger, she was in Weiss reacted her rapier piercing the floor as she summoned a sharp shield of ice around herself.

Looking at the shield of ice Ruby found herself feeling impressed at the girl's reaction speed. It wouldn't help though. Grinning bounced off the ice dome leaving a wide crack down the side. Her feet skidded as she landed before taking off again. Cardin chuckled as he watched her tear Weiss' defense apart with ease while Yang paled as she watched her sister destroy the only thing keeping Weiss safe. Clenching her hands, the blonde felt her own eyes widen as the ice began to shatter.

Weiss paled as her defense was torn to shreds, Winter had never prepared her for something like this. Was this what Yang warned her about; a cyclone of destruction just waiting to be unleashed? She had no idea what to do but she wasn't going to just lay down and quit. As her shield began to splinter, she shook her head, she would win this fight one way or another. Spinning the chamber on Myrtenaster she stopped on fire dust and got ready. Fire wrapped around her blade like a ribbon as she took a deep breath.

When the dome finally fell Ruby had no time to dodge the fireball that impacted her chest. Oh, that was impressive. To be able to formulate a plan under pressure was an admirable trait. Hitting the ground hard Ruby chuckled this was turning out to be much more interesting than she'd thought it would be. Rolling over she dodged Weiss' thrust and kneeled beside her weapon.

Sliding her hand under her scythe she tried to pick it up only to find it too heavy. Looking down and seeing the gravitation glyph she had to congratulate the heiress. Taking Crescent Rose out of the equation for even a second could win the girl their duel. It was rare to find someone who used their head in a fight so much so that she was almost willing to allow Weiss to win their little fight. Almost.

Weiss gasped her eyes widening as Ruby deflected her rapier with Thorn. Her eyes following the arc of her rapier for only an instant, but it was long enough for Ruby to lash out her hand wrapping around Weiss' throat. Feeling her back slam into the floor Weiss couldn't stop herself from groaning. Ruby smirked her hand pinning Weiss' wrist to the floor as she held Thorn against the older girl's neck.

"Do you yield," Ruby asked softly. Stunned Blue eyes stared into amused silver as the heiress processed the younger girl's words only to flush red when she realized how close the other girl was.

"Y-Yes."

Releasing the girl as Glynda called the match Ruby slid her dagger back into place before offering Weiss her hand. The heiress stared at her for a long moment before taking the offered hand and allowing Ruby to pull her to her feet.


	12. Emotions

It had only been a day since Ruby fought Weiss and now, she was training with Cardin. Something that she loved doing for one simple reason; neither of them held back after all holding back was for the weak and she wasn't weak at least not physically. Mentally she didn't even know if she was sane. Then again sanity wasn't a needed or encouraged trait when one wished to change the world; just look at Orochimaru, okay yeah bad example but at least she was trying to stay sane. Well, most of the time although the hundreds of notebooks she'd stuffed under her bed detailing plots and plans for conquering the world kind of invalidated her point. Pushing the thoughts from her mind she turned her attention back to the matter at hand which was beating her sparring partner into the dirt.

Blake watched as her leader twirled her scythe and Cardin blocked. Somehow it was as if they were able to read each other's minds. Every movement they made was mirrored by an opposite reaction. They fought as if they knew what the other would do before they even moved. She supposed it was because they'd trained together for so long but even then, this level of coordination was unexpected. Frowning Blake was all too aware that she was mirroring the expression that painted Cardin's entire team. It didn't help that she disliked Cardin on principle. While Ruby might claim that he had his reasons for the things he'd done Blake had seen people like him before and she could never trust someone like him. She could tolerate him though since no anti-faunus remark had come from him in her direction.

"Are you thinking about it too," Pyrrha asked as she got closer to her black-haired teammate. It was amazing to watch them spar, yet she wondered why she didn't have the same ability to read her leader's intentions. She couldn't' help but feel as if he should have been Ruby's partner instead of her. When Blake nodded, she continued, "it's like they know what the others going to do next."

"You okay," Jaune asked from his spot beside her. He sounded as if he was on the verge of passing out which given the fact, she'd ordered him to run laps around the room until he couldn't feel his legs were expected. He'd lasted longer than she thought he would, and she was almost impressed; he was determined if nothing else. Now, however the boy was sitting with his back against the wall simply waiting for his lungs to stop trying to murder him. Following her gaze to the fighting pair he gave a very uncharacteristic snort before saying, "I think our leaders trying to cut him in half."

Pyrrha laughed as Ruby did just that catching Cardin with the curved blade and sending him flying into the wall. The boy didn't even seem angry just annoyed as he pushed himself off the floor. Rubbing his shoulder Cardin rolled his eyes as Ruby bounced in place happily. When his team shouted protests at their leader's treatment Pyrrha felt her laughter faded. Exchanging a worried look with Blake as the three boys snapped at the small reaper she frowned. Despite their heart to heart, the three boys still disliked Ruby although she was beginning to suspect it was more on principle than any actual feelings of hate.

Eye twitching Cardin spun around turning his attention to his teammates. Freezing the three boys barely managed to take half a step back before he was lunging at them with his mace raised above his head. If they wanted his attention, then he would give it to them. Sighing at his behavior Ruby twirled a strand of hair around her finger a pleased smile on her face when she noticed the grin shared between the members of Team CRDL. Deciding to follow his example she turned her attention to her own team. More importantly on her redheaded partner.

"Pyrrha," Ruby shouted. Her war cry barely gave the girl time to blink before Ruby was tackling the older girl and sending them both to the floor. Nuzzling her partner, she grinned her expression reminding Pyrrha of an eager puppy. Blinking down at her innocently Ruby asked, "aren't you excited for tomorrow?"

Pyrrha was confused for a moment before remembering what the girl was talking about. Tomorrow their class would be heading out to collect sap; something that Ruby had been looking forward to. Giving her leader an indulging smile Pyrrha said, "yes I can't wait to see forever fall…can you let me up?"

Blinking as if she'd just realized their position Ruby pouted. She supposed the right thing to do would be to let Pyrrha up off the floor but then she might not get another chance to tackle the redhead for a while. Glancing up at Blake when the faunus stifled a chuckle, Ruby grinned. Maybe she could ambush Blake later; after all if would be a great way to train Blake's senses. And she loved Blake's cute little kitty ears.

"Sure," Ruby said. Winking at Pyrrha she stood and stretched as Jaune moved to help the redhead to her feet. At least her plan for operation arkos was going well, not only were the two adorable together but they genuinely liked each other too. Without the added strain of being a team leader, Jaune could focus more on just being himself and bonding with Pyrrha something that Ruby had actively encouraged. If they were happy then she would support them especially if it kept Jaune from going after Weiss; she was pretty sure that Yang would murder him if he even thought about asking out the heiress.

"Ruby can we talk," said Yang as she entered the training room. Speak of the devil and he shall appear, or would it be thinking of the devil. Ruby twitched for a moment as she struggled to keep her hyper thoughts under control, maybe she shouldn't have accepted the coffee that Cardin had offered her before they began training.

Ruby frowned, she'd completely forgot about talking to her sister after the spar with Weiss. She had no doubt that Yang was upset that she'd ignored her and tested Weiss against her sister's wishes. Hearing the blonde use her real name, Ruby knew she couldn't avoid the conversation like she'd been doing since her spar with Weiss. Shifting nervously like a naughty child, Ruby sent a quick glance toward her team before taking a deep breath. She couldn't put this off any longer.

"Pyrrha, Blake you two take the next spar," she ordered ignoring the groan that left them both. Her lips twitched upward into a smile before allowing her sister to lead her from the room. When they stopped just outside, she was surprised to get pinned against the wall.

"I told you not to hurt Weiss," Yang growled her eyes flashing scarlet. Instead of being intimidated by the blonde Ruby felt amusement. It was nice to know that her sister was still predictable; especially since she was sure that Yang was being led by her hormones rather than her head. Oh, there were so many jokes she could make if only Yang had been born male; at least there was always Cardin for her to tease.

"You do realize that I in no way hurt her right," she asked softly just to make sure her sister had understood that fact. Her amused patience was in contrast with her sister's rage. Tilting her head, she raised an eyebrow silently waiting for the girl to make a move.

Yang didn't disappoint either since she lashed out her fist heading for the younger girl's face. Dodging without hesitation Ruby snickered as Yang's fist impacted the wall creating a crack; Glynda was going to have so much fun repairing that. Dancing away from her sister Ruby grinned laughter shining in her eyes; it was always fun to rile up her sister. Yang huffed her eyes fading to lilac as she crossed her arms.

"You realize that Weiss passed the test right," Ruby asked causing Yang's eyes to widen. Only that asshole, Cardin, had ever passed her sister's tests. But then again Weiss was amazing so it was only natural that the heiress would impress her sister. Smirking Ruby watched her sister change from angry to proud within seconds. Narrowing her eyes as she realized she was supposed to be angry at the younger girl Yang pouted.

"Still I told you not to fight her, you should have respected my wishes," Yang snapped although there was no heat in her words. Ruby hummed as she leaned against the wall. It was hard to be intimidated by someone who was just preening like a peacock.

"How else was I supposed to know if she was worthy of dating my sister," Ruby asked enjoying the way her sister's face darkened with a blush.

That all she needed to see to know that Yang truly did like Weiss and that this wasn't just a passing infatuation. Yang had gone and gotten attached to Weiss Schnee heiress to the SDC. Had she been attracted to the girl in canon too? If that was the case, then why did it seem like canon Yang liked Blake? Right well pushing aside the fact that she'd just confused herself completely; she would simply count Yang's hormonal driven nonsense as being a result of her tampering and leave it at that. It wasn't as if Yang falling for Weiss was the worst outcome; it was one of the best. Logically she knew that this could only help in the long run, but she couldn't help but feel as if her sister was drawing away from her.

"You do know we're not actually sisters right," Yang asked breaking apart Ruby's thought process. The sudden statement caused thousands of curse words to run through her mind before she calmed herself. If her nails dug into her hand, then no one would even know.

Tilting her head back Ruby did her best not to react to Yang's words. The tone she took meant that the blonde wasn't trying to hurt her and knowing that Ruby could see that her sister was genuinely asking if she'd known this entire time that they weren't siblings. But who could have told Yang the truth; it wasn't Raven that was for sure? Since she didn't know Ruby was just going to blame Tai. He was usually to blame when something went wrong; like that time the house got set on fire, wait that was her, she'd been the one to accidentally set the house on fire. Right well, she'd think of something to blame him for eventually. Well besides the obvious fact he'd taken over the dad role in her life when her mother died but that wasn't something that she could bring up during family dinners. Well, she could but then he would cry.

"We are," she said turning to face her sister. When Yang started to argue Ruby held up a hand to cut her off as she said, "it doesn't matter if we're cousins or siblings because we were raised together. We fought and trained together. You are my sister Yang because you were there for me."

Seeing the surprised and shocked expression on the blonde's face Ruby had to bite her lip to keep from laughing like a hyena. As if sensing the other girl's amusement Yang rolled her eyes, she should have known that Ruby would waive the situation off as if it didn't matter in the slightest. Her sister had always been strange, yet the girl didn't even seem shocked that they weren't siblings. It was possible that Ruby had already known which given the fact her sister walked around like she knew everything was a reasonable conclusion. There was just one problem that they were both avoiding.

"I guess now all that's left is to tell our dads," Yang said. Her voice sounded nervous; of course, seeing Ruby's face turn pale as her eyes lit up with horror didn't help her keep calm.

Tai would cry. If he found out that Ruby knew he wasn't her father, the blonde man would begin crying and he wouldn't stop for at least a week. After that, he would sulk and perhaps even lose the strength to move. Basically, he would turn into a blubbering fool. The thought was horrifying mainly because it would lead to her having to explain to her father why the blonde man was curled in a corner sobbing. Dealing with that wasn't something she wanted to do; especially when she had no idea how to even broach the subject with their fathers in the first place. Pushing the images of a sobbing blonde man out of her head she took a deep breath and tried to calm herself.

"Yeah, that honors all yours," she said once she'd calmed down. There was no way she would go through the hell that was a crying Tai.

"You'd abandon me," Yang asked there was sincere surprise in her voice. Ruby honestly didn't know why she was shocked. It was completely in character for her to abandon Yang to face their blonde father.

"Without hesitation," she stated. The honesty in her voice causing Yang to raise an eyebrow.

Staring at her sister for a long moment Yang noticed that Ruby was serious. She'd never known that her sister was a coward but then again, she did remember Ruby running away from anything that could get her into trouble with their parents. Suddenly she recalled the single time Ruby had gotten into trouble with Tai only for the girl to pin it on her and run away. Feeling annoyed she crossed her arms as her eyes narrowed.

"Ruby…why do I get the sudden feeling that you're a bit of a bitch," she asked without expecting an answer. When Ruby's face twisted into innocence, she felt her eye twitch.

"Dear sister how could you be so cruel," Ruby whined sounding as if she was dying. The overdramatic expression on her face was so false Yang suddenly wanted to punch her in the face.

"You're literally throwing me to the WOLVES that are our fathers!"

"It's not like I haven't done it before," Ruby said. Dropping the innocent expression completely. Shrugging Ruby didn't seem to care as Yang simply stared at her before sighing n defeat.

"…I…true," she admitted. Brightening at the admission Ruby grinned at her. Why was her sister such a sarcastic little brat? Remembering who Ruby's father she dismissed the question. Qrow and Ruby had an incredibly similar in personality.

"See this is nothing new," Ruby said as she waved off her sister's discomfort. Grinning she decided to change the subject and mess with her sister at the same time as she said, "Any way you should invite Weiss over for joint training."

"What..."

"Actually, maybe you should invite your entire team," she said before Yang could argue. Seeing her gears turning in the blonde's head she almost snickered. Her sister wasn't an idiot and she had no doubt that Yang would figure out what she was doing.

"Ruby…"

"Or maybe we should skip training altogether and go to the ridiculously awkward family dinner stage," Ruby teased. Seeing the realization light up Yang's eyes she grinned amusement on her face. Her sister's expression of pure exasperation fueled Ruby's giggles as the blonde rolled her eyes.

"I hate you," Yang said softly. She was one hundred percent done with this entire conversation. Turning she began to stalk out of the building when she noticed the auburn-haired boy leaning against the training room door. Meeting his eyes, she felt the urge to punch him in the face but given that it was Cardin she wasn't that surprised. Pushing the urge down deep and reminding herself that he was Ruby's best friend; although she didn't know how the girl kept walking.

"Is that a no," Ruby called after her. When her sister closed the door behind her instead of answering Ruby shrugged.

Cardin smirked; he'd always hated Yang. Ruby was his little sister damn it; the blonde was simply competition. Did his jealousy make him a horrible person; most likely. But he no longer cared because Yang was showing her true colors by growing away from Ruby. The girl was allowing her newfound feelings for Weiss to come between her and Ruby. Not that Ruby cared given the fact that the girl didn't even seem to notice that Yang was ignoring her most of the time now.

He thought she was too accepting and forgiving. Sighing he ran a hand through his hair pushing down his annoyance at the situation. Turning to Ruby he watched her face change from amused to sad as she dropped the mask she wore when her sister was around. Closing the door to the training room he moved to sit beside the door.

"Well that sounded fun," he said gaining her attention. Glancing at him she gave a tired nod.

"It was," she admitted. What she wouldn't admit was that it felt as if she was losing her sister to Weiss. Not that she blamed either of the older girls; she understood that Yang fancied herself in love with the white-haired girl and as her sister, Ruby would support her. Even if she emotionally felt as if she was being abandoned.

"Your team and mine are currently having a free-for-all," he said trying to distract her, predictably it worked.

"Want to join in," she asked excitement sparkling in her eyes.

"No," he said quickly. Phantom pain rushed through his chest from their latest sparing match. He was in no hurry to fight her again. Raising an eyebrow, she studied for him for a moment as if she was trying to read his mind before rolling her eyes and lowered herself to sit beside him. Cardin wasn't ashamed to say he sighed in relief. Feeling her lay her head on his shoulder he relaxed. She might not have her sister here, but she had him.


	13. Forever Fall

Summer Rose was a hero who was known for her kindness and charismatic personality; she was a light shining even in the darkest times; Ruby didn't know if she could live in the light like her mother had. Summer's strength and power were something that even the grimm feared, yet she still died. Everyone died eventually, Summer was no exception. Ruby knew she looked exactly like her mother; however, she wasn't anything like Summer Rose. The woman was a hero, a symbol of hope, Ruby could never follow in those footsteps; she couldn't be a hero.

She was selfish; saving the world didn't matter to her. Living with her friends and family was the most important thing to her and to get the life she wanted she would destroy everything in her path to protect them. Even if it meant that she tore down governments and traditions along the way. So, she couldn't be like Summer Rose nor could she sit back and allow the world to be torn apart, however, that did not mean she was going to go off fighting the forces of darkness without a plan.

Looking up at the falling red leaves of Forever Fall she wondered if the blood-red color would stain the streets during the fall of Beacon. Could she truly allow the fall to happen? Yes, without hesitation, if she gained profit from it. If she did then would that make her a murderer by association? She wasn't sure. Beacon was a way to train the next generation of humanities protectors, but she didn't quite know if that would be enough. With a woman who could control the grimm wouldn't it be better to go on the offensive and destroy her, yet she couldn't do that. Not when she didn't have all the facts or understand how this supposed shadow war worked.

Perhaps Ozpin would give her the answers she wanted but there was also the possibility that he wouldn't yet the one thing she did know was that she couldn't trust him. People like him kept secrets that hurt people. She wanted to trust him, but he was a liar; a good liar. Sighing she glanced over at where Cardin was training with Jaune. They'd already finished their assignment, Pyrrha was guarding the sap, so the three teams had chosen to use the extra time to train.

Curling up under the tree she'd chosen Ruby glanced up as the branch above her creaked. Blake shifted as she turned the page in her book. Rolling her eyes at her bookworm teammate, Ruby leaned forward her chin resting on her knees. Her ever-growing fondness for her team was also something she hadn't foreseen happening.

Cardin side stepped Jaune's attack with amusement his eyes tracking the other boy's movements even as he cackled. It seemed that the knight wasn't any better at hand-to-hand; although the flexibility he showed was impressive. He doubted the boy would approve of him commenting on that, however, he would probably take the comment a lot better if it came from Pyrrha. Their romantic interactions made him sick. Why couldn't they just say what they wanted to say and stop playing around?

Hearing Pyrrha call an end to the spar he chose to turn his attention to Ruby. His little rose had been getting lost in thought more often now; most likely because of the future events she refused to tell him about; much to his growing annoyance. It had to be something bad, but he wasn't quite sure that she even knew what to do about her future knowledge. Sidestepping Pyrrha as the girl rushed to check on Jaune who seemed very embarrassed about her actions; Cardin walked over to Ruby who was pushing herself into a standing position.

Watching his leader joke around with the girl Russel felt nothing but jealousy. Cardin was his leader, yet all the boy cared about was that stupid little girl. He hated feeling as if he was second best to a child. He wanted to hurt her; to make her feel every ounce of rage that he did. It would be so easy to just strangle her until she dropped dead. That's why it was so easy for him to reach down and pick up the jar of sap laying a few feet away.

Tightening his grip on the jar he wondered if he was simply invisible to everyone around when no one noticed him. Sneering he narrowed his eyes his expression darkening as her reared back his arm and tossed the jar at the small girl. Except the jar didn't hit her and shatter or even hit her at all. Instead, it impacted his leader's chest and shattered covering Cardin's armor and shirt in sticky purple sap. Suddenly Russel felt as if his life span had shortened by several years as Cardin's indigo eyes narrowed into slits.

Ruby snickered at the dumbfounded expression on his face that was quickly changing to anger. Her amusement was the only thing keeping him from charging over to his teammate and snapping at him. Dove and Sky had already abandoned their foolish teammate in favor of hiding behind Weiss' team; causing the white-haired girl to roll her eyes at their cowardly actions.

Taking a deep breath to try calming himself down Cardin closed his eyes and counted to thirty. He could feel his classmates tensing around him with wary caution as they awaited his meltdown. It would be a shame to disappoint them but tuning into the fear that hung around his partner he felt like an idiot. Was he really such a horrible leader that his teammates were afraid of him? Russel was jealous of Ruby and he'd done nothing to change that because he found the entire situation amusing. Now however his foolish teammate had thrown a jar of grimm baiting sap at him in a forest full of the creatures. Was it wrong that he felt fondness rather than annoyance?

"I think it's time we had a chat," he said opening his eyes to look at his teammate. A teammate that he had neglected for his own amusement.

"I-"

"Go ahead just don't go too far," Ruby said before turning her attention to Weiss who for a moment looked like a skittish deer. The expression was mirrored on Yang's face as the blonde realized just what her sister was about to do.

Waving off her warning he grabbed Russel's arm before he began dragging his teammate behind him. there was no way he would have this conversation around the others especially since he knew the exact reason behind Russel's emotions. He wasn't blind to the jealousy and anger running through his partner's veins.

Taking the opportunity to bolt; Weiss and Yang wandered away from the area while saying something about taking the sap to Glynda. Raising an eyebrow Ruby wondered just how often people would run away from her; it made it hard to tease others when they continued to flee. She'd only wanted to comment on their growing relationship.

Watching them go, Ruby rolled her eyes as she sat back down beside the tree. Cardin should have dealt with his team a week ago before it became this bad. Well, it wasn't really his team that was causing the issues but his partner. At least her own team was getting along with each other. Although there were still upcoming issues that would have to be dealt with. Like the White Fang, Weiss, Mt. Glen, and Jaune's weapons. All of which were looking to be both annoying and trying.

The most obvious upcoming issue was the reaction Weiss would have had to learning Blake was a faunus and former member of the White Fang. Without the heiress knowing that it would be difficult to stop the dust robbery at the docks from happening; unless she went and stopped it herself. But that would bring up the issue of explaining how she knew about it in the first place; plus, if Blake never met Sun then her second favorite ship would never happen. Or she could just have them meet once Sun and his team came to Beacon, and deal with Roman herself. She doubted her team would approve but she had promised Cardin they would spend bonding time together soon.

"You okay," Blake asked as she tapped her teammate on the head. Blinking Ruby glanced upward her eyes meeting concerned gold. Her feline teammate looked really worried and suddenly she felt cold for thinking of using the raven-haired girl. Standing slowly Ruby gave Blake a clearly false smile before reaching back to tap her fingers on the metal of her weapon.

"Yes," she said her eyes sliding away from her teammate to where Jaune and Pyrrha were whispering with each other. It was amusing how quickly the two had became attached to each other although that was what Ruby had wanted in the first place. It was funny how easy it was for her to manipulate the people she cared about. Did that make her a horrible person?

"Liar," the faunus whispered as she slid off the branch. Landing gently, she smirked at the surprised expression her leader sent in her direction. It was times like this that Ruby reminded her of Adam; she really hoped that the two of them would one day meet, just to see his reaction when he realized he was like a human girl. Shifting on her heels at the thought of how a battle between them would turn out the faunus decided to put the idea to the back of her mind, instead she asked, "You're not a very good liar Ruby."

For a moment the silver-eyed girl just stared at her, then she sighed. A flash of pain sparked across the girl's eyes before she smiled warmth invading her eyes. Blake tilted her head knowing that the girl would speak when she wanted to. It was all too easy to read her leader; mainly because the girl had never truly bothered to hide her true emotions. In all the ways Ruby reminded her of Adam it was the pride that Blake noticed the most.

"Will you accompany me to Vale this weekend," Ruby asked an uncharacteristic sad smile forming on her face. Tilting her head in question Blake nodded slowly.

(Cardin)

"Let go of me," Russel snapped jerking his arm away from his grip. Stumbling as he did so the green-haired boy put distance between them. Anger burned under his skin so hot that he was barely keeping himself from lashing out again.

"Sure," Cardin agreed. The contrast between Russel's hot fury and Cardin's cold amusement was apparent as he simply watched his teammate simmer in anger. Smirking he asked, "Why don't you tell me why your so angry?"

"Screw you," Russel snapped crossing his arms.

Raising an eyebrow Cardin drifted his gaze down his teammate's body for a moment before reminding himself that it wasn't an offer. Running a hand through his hair he watched the boy shift nervously under his gaze; it was easy to see the smaller boy was uncomfortable. Any other time he would totally milk the situation in order to gain more amusement from it but somehow that didn't seem to be the right choice; the entire situation made him feel a bit guilty. Finally letting his smirk fade to a more serious expression he hoped that this little team drama wouldn't last too long.

"Russel i-"

"No, the only person you care about is that little bitch," he snapped taking a step forward in anger. He didn't notice the way Cardin's eyes darkened for a moment as the boy's hands twitched. Instead, he narrowed his eyes and said, "you don't even notice your team when she's around and you're supposed to be our leader!"

"Don't call her that."

"Right that's the only part you listened to," Russel mumbled ignoring the warning look Cardin sent in his direction. He wasn't afraid of his leader; he was however very annoyed. Tilting his head back he said, "it's obvious that your team doesn't even matter to you."

Eyes flashing Cardin said nothing as he stared at his partner. Was that truly what Russel thought? It was true that he cared about his team, but he had no idea how to actually show that he cared without it being seen as a weakness. He didn't truly understand what it meant to care about someone other than Ruby who knew him inside and out.

"Your wrong," he stated softly. Running a hand through his hair he sighed before saying, "Besides I don't see why my relationship with Ruby bothers you so much."

"Liar, you're a cocky bastard but you're not stupid," Russel snapped. True, Cardin was all too aware of the jealousy and the reason his green-haired teammate felt it.

"Maybe I just want to hear you say it," he said stepping closer to his partner. Indigo eyes narrowed without heat as his eyes met Russel's.

"Say what? That you're my leader and that I'm your partner and that you should care about our team rather than about that little runt."

The words hung in the air for a moment, but Russel couldn't ignore how close the other boy was to him. The sudden urge to take a step back was almost overwhelming. Neither of them noticed the red eyes watching them from the trees.

"Is that really the reason why you're so angry," he asked the soft tone of the question sending shivers down Russel's spine. Eyes darting down his partner's body again Cardin didn't hesitate to move closer asking, "or do I have to voice your reasons for you?"

"T-those are my reasons," Russel snapped. He hated how all it took was a glance to turn him into a stuttering mess. Shifting on his feet when he noticed just how close they were to each other.

"Now who's the liar, you know I never th-"

The words faded when Russel saw the grimm closing in. Cardin didn't see the creatures approaching. For a single moment he wanted to flee but he shoved that urge down. Cardin was an arrogant jerk, but he was his partner. Tensing he felt his feet move before his mind could catch up with his actions.

"MOVE!"

Shoving the taller boy out of the way Russel unsheathed his dagger cutting through the grimm's neck in one smooth motion. Landing he winced as another clawed paw slammed into his body. Crashing to the ground he barely noticed his daggers go flying away from him or the way Cardin swore. Pushing himself off the ground his eyes found Cardin's form as the boy tightened his grip on his mace.

A dark smile formed on the taller boy's face as he stepped between his teammate and the approaching pack of grimm. At least it was only Beowolves and Ursa. Sliding a hand into his pocket he pulled out his scroll and sent a quick message to Ruby before taking a small step back. At least the day wasn't boring. Spinning his mace in his hand he smirked before slamming his mace into the ground and pressing a button on the handle at the same time. A shockwave of flames rushed toward the creatures and he followed it.

The sharpened metal of his mace dug into an Ursa as it stumbled backward from the fire. Ducking under a clawed swipe he used the momentum to roll forward before kicking at the back of the Beowolf's legs. Watching it fall he didn't hesitate to crush its skull before blocking the attack coming from the left. Backing away from the grimm slowly he glanced at his teammate for a moment before catching sight of a blur of red.

Determining that he'd put enough distance between them he pulled his mace over his head uncaring of the charging grimm. Twisting the handle as he brought the weapon down, he smirked. The scent of roses and gunpowder reached his nose. Slamming his mace down on the ground sent a shockwave of earth at the pack of Beowolves and Ursa that had surrounded them. Feeling Ruby's foot bounce off his shoulder he glanced upward seeing her spin in a spiral of petals before stabbing her scythe into the ground. A blade of petals carved through the grimm as she landed gently.

Pulling her weapon from the ground she raised an eyebrow in silent question. When his eyes flickered to Russel, she made an amused sound as she casually blocked a swipe from a beowolf. Kicking it away she cut upward carving the grimm in half. Spinning with her weapon she reached behind her allowing Cardin to grab her arm. Swinging her into the air he chuckled at her exclamation of excitement. Crashing onto an Ursa she stabbed the bladed pummel through its skull.

Dropping to the ground she relaxed and allowed herself to fight on autopilot. Both she and Cardin had fought like this together since they'd met. It was a style they were good at and knowing that he was here with her meant she was safe. Noting the others watching them she smirked. There was also the fact that fighting like this was more for show than anything else.

Ruby noticed something was wrong the moment she felt Cardin's aura flare. Tightening her grip on the metal of her weapon she almost hissed. Her eyes cut to where Cardin had crashed into a tree after defending his teammate; Russel was fending off an alpha Beowolf with his daggers and was struggling far more than a Beacon student should be. Rolling her eyes at the green-haired boy's uselessness she kicked off the ground just as he crumbled.

Russel didn't hate Ruby Rose, he hated that his leader cared about her more than he did his own team, yet as the clawed paw came crashing down on his chest all he saw was red. Petals fell to the ground as the girl stood over him blocking the attack. Watching her twist her weapon and disembowel the grimm he suddenly realized that she could have destroyed him at any moment. Somehow realizing that made him feel worse than before.


	14. Shopping

First of all, she was not interested in dating Blake; no matter what Cardin said. She was simply trying to connect with her teammate who so far had kept a steady distance between them for some reason. Part of her was curious if she'd somehow set off some instinct in the other girl that made her wary but there was no way to work that question into polite conversation. It was sort of annoying however when her plan to spend the day with the raven-haired girl was ruined by Yang turning the entire situation into a joint team bonding trip. As such she decided to have Blake accompany her to meet Nik; after all, she did need to get the materials for Jaune's weapon.

Was it strange that she was oddly nervous about bringing Blake with her to Nic's shop; this was the first time she'd bought someone other than Cardin to meet the old man? It was strange that introducing a friend to him seemed almost like introducing Blake to her dads. Although she knew it didn't really matter, she was worried about Nik liking her friends; he was her honorary grandfather after all. Stopping outside the old man's shop she stared at the door for a long moment with Blake's amused eyes on her back.

She knew that she had to open the door but part of her would rather stay out here where his thrown shoes, and other items, couldn't reach her. He had a habit of throwing things at customers to test their reflexes, something that she honestly thought was nothing more than a bad habit; but it had enhanced her reflexes over the years. Entering slowly, she caught the shoe that was thrown in her direction with what she wanted to say was exasperation, but she felt more amused.

"Hi to you too old man," she said the teasing tone causing Blake to raise an eyebrow. Sending the old man, a smirk Ruby tossed the shoe back to Nik. He grunted in her direction before slipping his shoe back on. Looking over at Blake for a moment he huffed, the dismissal causing the feline faunus to narrow her eyes.

"Where have you been," he grumbled with a hint of worry in his voice. Taking the time to study her, he frowned saying, "I hope you didn't manage to mess up that jacket of yours."

"Jackets fine Nic," she said walking over to lean against the counter. Motioning to Blake she said, "This is Blake Belladonna my teammate. Blake this is Nic my honorary grandfather."

The old faunus glanced at Blake for a long moment before rolling his eyes as part of him wondered if Ruby had only come here to show off her new pet. Not that he would mention that to the faunus who already seemed ready to murder him for what she perceived as an insult. He could easily see the resemblance between the girl and her parents; although he doubted her father was still the young revolutionary, he was the last time they met.

"Menageries Princess," he mused his eyes firmly on the silver-eyed girl letting him catch the way she stiffened slightly at his words. He'd known his little one was special; he knowledge was far more than a normal person should have, even being a prodigy didn't explain the things she knew. Instincts bred from years of being a huntsman told him that his little one would become a force of change in this world; he just hoped he would live long enough to see what she would do. Offering her a small smile he said, "I'm aware of who she is and what she's done. Just like I assume you are."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Ruby said turning her head away from him, in doing so she managed to see her teammate's eyes narrow at the old man.

"Of course not," he said deciding to let her get away with lying to him, however, that didn't mean he wasn't going to tease her by saying, "well at least it's not Cardin."

Flushing scarlet at the reminder of the last time she'd brought Cardin to visit the shop, she shifted nervously. Her brother had taunted the old man leading to half the shop being destroyed when Nic had gotten tired of his attitude. She'd never forget the way those chakrams had torn through the room as if they had a mind of their own. The knowing smirk on his face told her, he was all too aware of her slight fear of old people with pointy weapons.

Clearing her throat Blake moved to stand beside her leader causing the girl to jolt out of whatever waking nightmare she was having. Shifting on her feet, Ruby leaned fully over the counter looking at the weapon he was putting together. Tilting her head in mild curiosity she asked, "what are you working on?"

"That gun you ordered," he said casually. Catching sight of the almost put together revolver she twitched in annoyance something that Blake noticed immediately.

"Nic," she said the whining tone causing him to smirk in amusement. Crossing her arms, she said, "that was supposed to be a team thing. At least tell me you didn't mess with the other stuff I ordered."

She'd wanted to use putting together the weapon as a bonding activity between her and Jaune. How was she supposed to bond with her little puppy now? Pouting she didn't notice the way Blake tracked her movements but Nic did. Smirking he guessed that either she was curious about her leader or she didn't trust the reaper; he was willing to bet it was the second option. Ruby could, to those that didn't know her, come across as a bit much.

"Nope," he said causing her to blink. She'd ordered several things for her teammates and she didn't want anything to mess up her gifts. Brightening she smiled only to pout when he stated, "not much I can do it it's already put together."

Pouting at the old man, who she knew was messing with her, Ruby took the small box he passed her. She'd put in the order for her teammates the day after they'd been assigned as a team. A dagger for Blake and Pyrrha and the gun for Jaune. While she hated not being able to give him a gift as she had for the girls, but she had no idea what to give him. He wasn't a dagger person as such she had no idea what his fighting style was yet. Opening the lid to Blake's gift, she gently ran her fingers over the weapon before turning to face her teammate.

"Blake can you give us a minute," she asked causing the other girl to nod. Looking around the shop she caught sight of a shelf of dust blades on a far shelf. Glancing curiously at the box she wondered what her leader was hiding for a moment before stalking toward the dust blades. Waiting until her teammate was out of hearing range Ruby sighed as she picked up the dagger.

"Small, easily concealed, with a hollowed hilt for dust," she stated examining the dagger with Blake's emblem sewn into the leather sheath. Unsheathing the dagger, she stared at the darkened metal for a moment. The blade was thin double-sided, and she could see a clear fuller running toward the tip that seemed to be hollowed out. Flipping it in her hand she studied the point for a moment before noticing the slight indention, most likely for poison. Laying down the sheath she held the dagger steady in her hand before coating her finger in aura and running it along the blade. Hissing she pulled her finger away as her aura lashed out and the small cut healed quickly. Across the store, blade twitched her nose picking up the metallic scent of Ruby's blood and she moved to watch her leader from behind a shelf. Narrowing her golden eyes, she watched the girl sheathe the weapon and lay it back in the box.

"Aura resistant metal," Nic said looking up from where he was working on the barrel of Jaune's gun. Taking the chance to grin at her he said, "very rare. You said your friend had an assassin air about her. The other one though has enough metal folded into it your partner's polarity should work fine with it."

"The metal's also illegal," she said causing him to roll his eyes. It wasn't illegal when he was running around killing grimm and collecting bounties on rogue huntsmen.

"It'll also keep your teammate alive," he retaliated besides he doubted he would ever be arrested for importing illegal weapons. He no longer cared about the law either, he was far too old to care anymore but it was cute that she cared enough to point it out. Smiling he said, "worry about the law when you get old."

"Like you," she teased, "the law doesn't even worry you now. Selling illegal weapons to kids, you should be ashamed of yourself."

"But I sleep fine at night," he said and handed her the finished gun. It was a white six-shot revolver with Jaune's emblem imprinted on the handle in gold. The weapon was simple, like every first gun should be, and she looked forward to training him to use it. Raising an eyebrow, he said, "you want to order anything else, or are you actually going to pay me this time."

"Yes," she said and smirked when she saw the greed light up his face. The fake expression almost caused her to laugh but instead, she said, "I need another dagger."

"What is with you and daggers," he whined before getting out his sketch pad asking, " you do know there are other weapons right. What about chakrams?"

Twitching the smile on her face became plastic as she stared at him, her mind returning to the only time she'd seen him angry. It had been terrifying in her opinion and it drove home the fact he wasn't just some old man simmering in a weapon shop. He was a retired huntsman from Atlas who led over a hundred and fifty successful missions then chose to live in Vale after his wife died. More than that he was strong enough to scare her uncle into submission. He did all of that with the pair of serrated chakrams hidden under the counter.

"Too hard to handle," she said lightly pretending that she wasn't thinking about just how well he could use his weapon. Instead, she reached out taking the sketch pad and outlining what she wanted.

"Oh, but a giant scythe is easy," he ground out. Eyes snapping to his she silently dared him to insult her baby; Crescent Rose was perfect the way it was, and she didn't need another person judging her on her weapon. Seeing the expression, he let it go choosing to ask instead, "why does no one ever want chakrams?"

"Just because you love the weapon doesn't mean others do," she replied handing the book back. Taking it he passed her the holster and a box of bullets for Jaune's gun. She smirked when he held out his hand for payment saying, "just put it on my tab."

"No that is not how this works," he argued but marked it down on the page she'd used to sketch. If there was one thing she could always count on it was that he would always trust her. Rolling his eyes at the small smile she gave him he said, "freeloader."

"You know I'll pay you back," she said not at all insulted. She was honestly planning on paying him after she knew how well the weapons worked. It wouldn't be good to pay full price for something that might not work out well for those she was giving them to. Shrugging she said, "besides I paid you for the jacket."

"True," he relented and pulled out a large metal case with a handle saying, "if you pay me half now I'll give you this to put the weapons in."

The case was made of black metal and she was pretty sure it was the same type used by drug dealers along with other criminals. For one small moment, she was Alice again watching as Dante charmed his way through drug deal after drug deal without caring if she was watching. He'd never actually thought she would betray him or even stand against him; funny that out of the two of them she was the only one who actually cared. Snapping out of the memories when he placed the case on the table she tugged at the edge of her jacket.

"Yeah, because that's not suspicious at all," she said dryly not allowing her memories to cloud this life. Watching him laugh she took a moment to smile at him softly despite knowing he was about to start arguing with her. They would have continued bickering but at that moment Weiss stomped into the store and Ruby had to stop him from throwing the case at her head. She was pretty sure that the force he would have used might have caused the white-haired girl brain damage. Instead, she slammed the case down using it to hide her newest order and turned to the heiress. Trying to be casual she said, "hey Weiss."

"Did you know your teammate was in the white fang," Weiss asked with narrowed enraged blue eyes. There was so much fury in her expression that she could have melted all the ice in Atlas with just one look. Still, she saw the exact moment Ruby went from friendly to ice-cold as her silver eyes hardened.

"Oh," she said trying to keep her voice calm. She barely managed to keep herself from glancing at Blake who she was sure felt this was her worst nightmare. Straitening she kept all emotion from her voice as she asked, "And why do you think that?"

Weiss fell silent her hands clenching into fists as she stared at the other leader. It was Jaune: who told her about Blake being a faunus, who screamed at her in defense of the White Fang despite Pyrrha trying to stop him, who let slip that Blake was a faunus. After that Weiss had put together the pieces herself. She could still see those enraged blue eyes glaring at her, challenging her, in a way that no one had ever done. That was something she hated yet respected, however, that didn't stop her from feeling that he was a naive fool.

"Jaune," she said her pride kept her from lying. Ruby twitched her hand dropping from the case as she processed her answer.

She had no doubt that Jaune had a very good reason for telling Weiss; however, at the moment she didn't have enough control to keep herself from snapping if she spoke. Weiss was a threat to her teammate, her Blake, in her life as Alice all threats were eliminated quickly. Ruby was all too aware of the aura resistant dagger less than a foot away as her hand twitched. Feeling something like ice crawl down her back she tried not to shutter at the long-repressed instincts that were rising to the surface. She'd always tried since she was reborn, to separate Alice from Ruby but sometimes it was hard to keep the bright happy part of herself from darkening. There was so much fury and hate beneath her skin that it was hard sometimes to continue acting like Ruby Rose.

"You know that the White Fang are vicious murdering criminals," Weiss said not realizing the danger she was in at that moment nor did she notice the way Blake sucked in a breath at her words and glanced at the back door.

"Well the Schnee's aren't much better," Nicolas cut in catching Weiss off guard. He'd seen the change in Ruby the instant the Heiress had brought up her teammate. He'd been around dangerous people from the moment he became a huntsman; Ruby was dangerous, except she was able to hide just how dangerous she truly was. Watching the Schnee's attention snap to him he asked, "do you even know how many faunus die in your mines each year, little girl."

Taking a moment to breathe, Ruby moved away from the counter. Away from the dagger. Tugging on her jacket she tried to relax; she couldn't do anything about her instincts, but she could keep them under control. Turning to look at Nic she knew why he was so ready to argue; he was a lion faunus. Straightening she squared her shoulders as she mentally prepared herself for talking to Weiss. She had to make the white-haired girl understand before she hurt Blake.

"Nic," Ruby cut in stopping the argument she knew was coming; she had no doubt that he would tear Weiss apart the same way he did to Qrow. The old huntsman scoffed and sat back in his wheeled desk chair making sure that the chair squeaked as loudly as possible. Seeing that he wasn't going to antagonize Weiss Ruby focused all her attention on the heiress and ignored the baiting action. Keeping her voice calm she said, "The white fang used to be a peaceful organization. Blake was a part of that white fang, not the one that terrorized your family or hurt innocents."

"But-"

"No, I don't care what you think you know," Ruby said cutting off the girl. Weiss was sheltered and naïve about just how horrible her family was, but she didn't blame the other girl for her lack of knowledge. Meeting the other girl's cautious blue eyes, she said, "faunus are punished just for existing. How would you feel if you were seen as nothing more than an animal? Blake is one of us, she's a student at Beacon working to make the world better. Do you have any idea how hard it must have been for her to leave behind her whole life just for a shot at a second chance?"

Weiss wilted as the words echoed around them in the current silence. Were things really that bad for the faunus? Of course, she'd heard the stories about how horrible it was in the mines, but she'd always thought it was an exaggeration. Were the faunus that afraid of being caught that they would hide their features just to appear normal. While she might not truly know Blake, she did consider the girl a friend to her. Could she really call her a friend if the only thing she could think about was what she was; did she really deserve to call Blake her friend. Seeing the defeated realization in the other girl's eyes Ruby sighed.

It wasn't Weiss' fault that she felt the way she did about the faunus. The heiress was a product of her environment rather than the cause of the issue. There were hundreds, if not thousands, of people who thought the same way that Weiss did. If anyone was to blame it was Jacques Schnee for his bad parenting.

"Look, why don't you head back to Beacon and forget all about what you learned today," Ruby offered causing Weiss to tense as she watched Ruby stared back at her with a warm expression. She didn't understand how Ruby could still look at her like that after she'd come in here and threatened her teammate. Everyone knew how protective Ruby was of her teammates, so why was she being so nice.

Weiss clenched her hands as she shifted away from the redhead her nervousness multiplying before she gave a hurried nod and rushed from the shop. Ruby barely waited until she was gone to look around for Blake only to find the faunus missing. Letting out a curse she leaned against the counter as she tried to calm down. She kept repeating that it wasn't Weiss' fault in her head, but she wanted nothing more than to strangle the heiress. She'd been making so much progress with Blake; the faunus had almost been ready to trust her.

"Well that was interesting," Nick said. He would have sounded amused if not for the annoyed expression on his face. He'd never liked the Schnee family; being a faunus meant he'd never gotten a chance to. What he especially didn't like was the little princess coming into his domain like she owned the place.

"When did Blake leave," she asked softly knowing that he wouldn't have missed her teammate making a run for it.

"You know when," he said teasingly. Instead of being amused she sent a dark glare in his direction causing him to huff in exasperation before saying, "Fine it was right after the Schnee mentioned your teammate."

Wincing a bit, Ruby nodded slowly. Blake must think that Jaune betrayed her; that must be why she ran. Shifting toward the door she stilled when she remembered that she still had her boxes of weapons to return to the dorm. She couldn't run after Blake right now; at least not with her arms full of boxes. Glancing down at the black case she felt defeated knowing that she would have to buy the thing.

"I'm guessing Blake's your kitten," Nic asked casually allowing a smirk to appear on his face while Ruby twitched. He expected her to deny the accusation or to blush and panic, yet instead, she narrowed her eyes.

"Blake is my teammate," she said crossing her arms. When he raised an eyebrow, she shifted slightly before asking, "if I pay you now will you shut up?"

"Yep," he said all too happy to take the deal. Waving the metal case again he grinned at her saying, "and I'll throw in the case I usually give to my black market buyers."

"That's not something you should say casually," she scolded pulling out her wallet. Sending a mental apology to her father she handed over the money she'd taken from his account. It wasn't stealing if he gave her his pin number. Still, she felt a bit guilty however she tried to push down the feeling as she said, "and why am I not surprised you have those."

Taking the money, he stood and opened the case for her with a flourish. He served clients both legal and illegal in Vale, however, those two groups didn't know about each other. Watching as she placed everything inside, he closed the case.

"You need anything else," he asked as he handed it over. When she shook her head and started to leave, he decided to tease her a little bit more saying, "have fun tracking down your cat!"

"Shut up old man," she yelled closing the door behind her before his shoe could ram into her head.


	15. Reapers and Thieves

Ruby stared up at the moonlit sky and continued walking although she didn't really want to. After looking for Blake for the last six hours she was far too exhausted to even think about anything other than finding her teammate. While she'd sent her teammates back to Beacon with Weiss' team and the case, she had continued to look. Even now she could still remember the look of terror on Jaune's face when he'd seen her; apparently, he'd been blaming himself for Weiss figuring out Blake was a faunus. Lucky for him she'd decided to let Blake decide his punishment once she found the faunus.

Logically she knew that Blake would meet Sun and be fine, but she wanted to find her teammate. She wanted the faunus to know that she wasn't going to push her away due to her species; not even Cardin would do that, anymore at least. The also more selfish reason was that she wanted to fight Roman Torchwick once more. Cardin was on standby back at Beacon so all she had to do was send him a message on her scroll two hours before the fight would take place.

Stumbling into someone she looked up to apologize; perhaps it was finally time for her to find an inn and take a nap. Looking up at the blonde she'd ran into she rubbed her eyes tiredly. Maybe staying up last night outlining her latest plot wasn't the best course of action but in her defense, she'd been sure that she'd managed to avoid her teammate playing Houdini. Now however she was looking up at the one person in the world she knew would never allow Blake to get hurt while also being the one person she willingly shipped her teammate with.

"You okay there," he asked with concern. Tail swishing behind him he blinked his blue eyes down at her as his hands rested on her shoulders, steadying the girl when she almost toppled over.

"Yeah," she said and covered her mouth when she yawned. Tired was an understatement; the first bed she saw was likely going to be the one she collapsed on. Or maybe she would just go to sleep on that park bench she passed an hour ago; they couldn't be that uncomfortable if homeless people slept on them all the time. Wait… she'd just found Sun who in canon had found Blake; it was possible that he knew where she was. Straightening she pushed her exhaustion into a box in the back of her mind before saying, "I'm looking for my teammate. She has black hair and golden eyes."

"You mean Blake," he said more than asked. Scratching the back of his head nervously he shifted slightly; should he really bring one of Blake's teammates right to her when she'd run away from them. However, he couldn't just leave her there when she looked ready to fall asleep standing up, and if she'd went to the trouble of looking for her teammate despite her exhaustion then she really cared about the girl. Seeing the raised eyebrow, she sent in his direction he said, "I'm Sun."

"I'm Ruby," she said an amused smile appearing on her face. Standing in front of her was one of the only people who would have Blake's back when she couldn't; she hoped that Blake would do the same for him. The smile on her face didn't vanish as she said, "you've seen Blake."

It wasn't a question, but he nodded anyway; there was something knowing in her smile. Shifting nervously under her gaze he started, leading the girl back to the inn Blake was hiding at he was shocked that she was walking straight. The small girl had seemed dead on her feet yet now she was walking as if she was completely fine. Deciding he didn't like the silence, he asked, "so your Blake's teammate?"

"Leader," she corrected gently. Glancing over at the boy when he gasped, she resisted the urge to smirk.

"But you're so tiny," he said confusion in his voice. The girl's height barely reached his chest and he was shocked that she was a team leader. Seeing her roll her eyes he shifted nervously saying, "I mean I'm the leader of my team and none of them are as tiny as you."

"I can still fight despite being tiny. If you don't, believe me, we can always have a sparring match," she offered and he smirked slightly. She doubted that he knew what exactly he was signing up for when he nodded in agreement with her suggestion. Oh well, she wouldn't go easy on him.

Turning her thoughts back to Blake as they entered the inn Ruby began to worry. How would she react to seeing Blake? How should she react? She didn't even know if Blake wanted her here however that didn't mean she would back down and let her teammate be alone. In truth she was a very possessive person, even more so around people that she cared about. Blake was her's there was nothing else that she had to know in order to help the other girl. So, when Sun stopped outside a door and pushed it open, she didn't hesitate to enter the room.

Blake turned to look at the door from her spot by the window and froze when she saw her leader. She'd never seen Ruby look so tired; was that her fault. She paid no attention to Sun as Ruby stepped into the room and propped Crescent Rose against the wall, the girl was still so full of confidence that it radiated from her. There was part of her that wanted her leader to yell at her for leaving, yet there was a much bigger part that wanted Ruby to just pull her into a hug and never let go. She was so tired of being afraid of how the world would react to her being a faunus.

"I'll leave you two alone," Sun said closing the door. Whatever was about to happen was between teammates; not something that he could interfere with.

There was fear in Blake's eyes; it was obvious the faunus was worried about what she was going to say or do. Ruby could feel almost every muscle in her boy straining against the urge to draw the older girl into a hug however right now that might do more harm than good. While Blake might be her teammate, she was also a coward; Ruby didn't doubt that she would run away again at the slightest reason. That was why Blake had to be the one to start this conversation not her.

Blake waited for the small reaper to tackle her into a hug or yell at her, yet Ruby did neither. Instead she just stood there staring back at her with knowing silver eyes that pierced her soul. She felt as if Ruby could see past all the walls, she put up so instead she let them all down saying, "why are you here?"

Twitching at the question Ruby frowned her eyes narrowing. Did Blake not remember that she wasn't alone anymore? They were teammates, friends, so, why couldn't the faunus just understand that they wouldn't leave her to fight her demons alone. Ruby knew that she wasn't the easiest person to get along with, but she'd thought that the other girl would have at least accepted that her team would be there for her. Why couldn't she understand that she would never be alone? Sighing Ruby pushed down the torrent of emotions that she felt, instead she ran a hand through her hair.

"I thought you trusted us," she said finally before sitting on one of the beds in the room. Honestly at this point she was afraid that if she didn't sit down she would simply collapse. Looking up at her teammate she watched as Blake flinched but made no move to comfort the older girl instead she continued saying, "did you actually think we would turn on you?"

"No," Blake protested taking a step forward. While she might compare Ruby to Adam sometimes when the younger girl fought, she knew that she could trust her. Ruby was her friend even if she didn't really show it outwardly; she would even tolerate Cardin. She just didn't want her team to suffer for her mistakes nor did she want to lose them. Clenching her hands until her nails threatened to bite into her skin she said, "I just didn't know what to do."

"You ran," Ruby said calmly keeping the emotion out of her voice. She hated seeing her teammate like this however she couldn't afford to fall apart now. Tilting her head, she asked, "why?"

"I-" the older girl started before looking down. Would Ruby even understand her reasoning? The younger girl wasn't a faunus, she didn't know about the pain they were put through because of humans. She wanted to believe in her leader but at the same time, Weiss was a Schnee. The heiress to the SDC could make their lives hell if she wanted too and it was easier to run away than face the fact that she might have gotten her team into trouble. There was no way that she could explain to her leader that she was afraid her presence would get them hurt both emotionally and physically.

Ruby threaded her hands together and stared at the guilty faunus before sighing. She hated to admit it but she had a vague idea of what Blake was afraid of. While she knew Weiss wouldn't expose Blake the faunus had no such assurances. When she spoke, it was easy to hear the exhaustion and pain in her voice, "did you not trust me?"

Blake looked up and was surprised to see the tears in Ruby's eyes. The younger girl never showed her emotions so clearly, it was horrifying to know she was the cause of her leader's pain. She was quick to deny her leaders assumption, "there's no one I trust more."

It was shocking to realize that she meant the words wholeheartedly. Ruby, although she had her faults, was someone who had gained her trust. While it might be a mistake and lead her right back into the darkness, she'd escaped from she wanted to have faith in her leader. The redhead wasn't Adam despite how similar they were and treating her like him would cause nothing but grief. Ruby was kind and she doubted the girl would ever abandon her or order her to kill people.

"Then what does it matter," Ruby snapped as she tried to wipe her tears away. Until this moment she didn't know just how strongly the old fear of being abandoned clung to her soul. She didn't want to die alone again or be forgotten by those she loved. It wasn't fair how afraid she was of being alone. Trying to push the fears away she stood slowly and said, "the only person whose opinion you should be concerned about is ours, we're your teammates and if you're worried about someone taking you away then don't be. I don't like to share and your mine, my teammate, my friend. Nothing will change that."

"Sometimes it's not that easy," Blake said sadly. She knew all too well how cruel life could be and she doubted life would adhere to Ruby's plan for them. She'd seen far too many people crushed by the weight of the world to just believe in her leader without hesitation.

"This team is mine," Ruby said stubbornly her silver eyes flashing with a dangerous promise. She'd lost far too much in her first life to even consider giving up what she'd gained in this one. It was selfish but she'd rather burn the world to dust than allow anything to happen to those she cared about. Fighting to keep the possessive fire under control she said, "if you're worried about the Schnee's then don't be Weiss is on our side. If you're worried about the White Fang, then fight with us don't abandon us to go out on your own. How can we protect you if you keep running from us?"

Don't abandon me. It was an unsaid plea that hung in the air between them as if it was a dark cloud. Golden eyes widened as she noted the trembling in her leader's hands; it was all too easy to realize exactly what the younger girl was afraid of. She barely noticed her body was moving until her body was tackling her leader. Wrapping her arms around the girl she clung to her even as they crashed down onto the bed behind her leader. This was the first time she'd initiated any kind of contact with her leader and she could feel the younger girl shaking in her arms. Feeling Ruby return, the hug she closed her eyes taking in her leader's scent

The world might be cruel and crushing but Ruby was warm. The younger girl's stubborn nature would never allow her to walk away and abandon those she loved yet she also wouldn't shove her ideals on those she loved. It had taken one act of cowardice for Blake to realize that Ruby wasn't as strong as she pretended to be. The younger girl was terrified of being alone, she clung to those around her with iron claws. There was something fear-filled in the way Ruby tried to make everyone around her happy while keeping her own fears locked away.

When Sun returned to the room hours later, he was surprised to see them wrapped around each other fast asleep. At least, they had settled their issues, he hated arguing with his own team so seeing them make up so quickly was reassuring. Far too many teams had been destroyed by misunderstandings and arguments. He covered them with one of the blankets from his bed and went to lay down. He had to wonder what Neptune and his teammates were doing right now; were they angry that he'd came to Vale before them.

Ruby woke up the next morning to an empty bed and for a moment she almost panicked. The fear that her teammate had left her again was almost overwhelming, but she took a deep breath before pushing it down. Sitting up she stretched and looked around her eyes scanning the room for her teammate. Finding the black-haired girl sitting on the balcony with Sun eating breakfast she relaxed and stood slowly. Sun looked up when he saw a pale hand steal Blake's tea causing his blue eyes to meet amused silver.

"Morning Ruby," Blake said without glancing up at the other girl. Ruby sipped the tea before quickly giving it back to a smirking Blake however the taste lingered on her tongue.

"How can you drink something so bitter," she questioned and when Blake simply raised her eyebrow, she realized that was the reason the faunus was drinking bitter tea. It was a well-known fact among their team that Ruby liked sweet things. Rolling her eyes Ruby turned her attention to Sun saying, "good morning Sun."

"Morning," he said picking up his teacup with his tail.

The look of amusement she sent in his direction caught his attention, but she looked away from him just as quickly. Leaning against the railing behind her teammate's chair. She listened to Blake tell Sun about her past and felt a strange mixture of pride and sorrow for the older girl. It was impressive how Blake had broken the shackles holding her to the darkness of the world in favor of becoming a huntress.

"What about your parents," Ruby asked causing Blake's bow to twitch. The action brought an amused smile to Ruby's face while Sun looked between them curiously.

"They live on Menagerie," Blake told her leader as she placed down her teacup. It had been a while since she'd seen her family and thinking about them now made her realize how much she missed them. Yet even now she remembered the cruel words she'd said to them when she left to join Adam. There was a strained tone in her voice when she said, "my dad was in charge of the peaceful white fang until he stepped down."

"What are we going to do about the White Fang," Sun asked as Ruby stole a muffin off the table. While the two faunus talked it out and decided to check the docks for the white fang she continued to steal the food.

"So we're going to the docks to check and see if the white fang is going to steal the shipment of dust coming in tonight," Ruby clarified and both of them nodded. She didn't tell them she would be calling in backup or the fact that she knew Roman would be at the docks waiting on them. There was a smirk on her face as she said, "sounds fun."

"That's mine," Sun complained as she stole the last of his tea, Ruby was pleasantly surprised when it tasted sweet. Turning to Blake when he saw she wasn't going to give it back he asked, "Is she always like this?"

"I'm going to shower," Ruby said handing back his cup. It was far past time that the two faunus had a chance to talk alone and she wanted to wash her hair. Blake waited until Ruby vanished into the bathroom to speak.

"No, but I think she's decided your one of us," she said and when he looked confused, she sighed. Most of the time she didn't really understand her leader's mental state, she was pretty sure Cardin was the only one who could understand Ruby. There was one thing she did know about her leader; however, Ruby was incredibly accepting of people. Smiling slightly, she said, "in her mind the only reason she found me was you. That to her means you're under her protection."

"Did she do the same with you and your team," he asked curiously, he might be the leader of his team, but he'd never treated them the way Ruby did Blake. He did wonder just how strong the girl was that she thought a fight with the White Fang was fun.

"Yes," Blake said smiling although she might not admit it, she was happy for everything Ruby had done for her.

"Huh," he said confused but Blake simply smirked. She could have told him about Ruby's hugging habit but decided the look on his face would be worth seeing.

Hours later Ruby was placing her scroll back in her pocket after having sent a quick message to Cardin and her teammates. Running a quick hand through her hair she frowned slightly; there is always calm before a storm. Ruby could feel it coming and she hated it, the universe seemed to be pushing toward the fall of Beacon. It would have been all too easy to tell Ozpin everything, yet she didn't know if it was a good idea. All the things that she'd done up till now had been in preparation for the Fall of Beacon, yet she didn't know if she should even try to stop the attack.

As they reached the roof overlooking the docks, she felt her scroll buzz letting her know that Cardin had gotten her message. While he wouldn't be able to bring his team, mainly because neither of them thought his team could handle this, he would be able to bring along her teammates. She hadn't told Blake about her intention to summon reinforcements due to the fact she knew the older girl didn't want to involve their teammates.

Laying down on the roof she sighed deciding to close her eyes while they waited. Roman despite being a thief had more than enough battle experience than they did. If the man got serious, he might even be able to take out all three of them; at this point there was no way they could surprise him, well at least not for Sun or Blake. Her scythe skills were most likely on the same level as her uncle, and when her dagger was thrown in it would most likely be easy for her to overpower him.

She wouldn't be able to capture him though since that would change the timeline and she wanted to keep everything the same until her knowledge ran out. Cardin agreed that it would be for the best to keep almost everything the same while making small changes so that things would end in their favor. That didn't mean however that she had to hold back from having fun; for her battle was fun. The rush of battle was the only place where she felt truly at home.

Hearing footsteps she sat up slowly her eyes finding Sun as he walked over to sit beside her with his arms full of fruit. While Blake started a tangent about how stealing was wrong Ruby picked an apple off the pile and settled down to eat. She watched with amusement as the White Fang showed up without very much subtlety. If it was just Roman who was doing this raid, then it would be stealthier she had no doubt about that.

Hearing Roman snap at the faunus currently working to steal SDC dust, she took a bite out of her apple. The best thing to do would be to record the robbery and then present the evidence to Ozpin so he would open an investigation; however, there wouldn't be any fun in that. Watching Blake snarl and stand with anger dripping off her body, Ruby rolled her eyes. She was sure that Roman could be a lot worse if he wanted to be. She didn't see Neo around either so either the girl was off somewhere, or she was hiding in wait; personally, she would rather wait to meet Neo, however the prospect of meeting her early was tempting. Maybe she should start haunting ice cream shops for the woman, or would that count as stalking?

"The White Fang would never work with a human like him," Blake growled causing Ruby to raise an eyebrow. Was that bloodlust she sensed coming from the black-haired girl; how interesting. While Blake dove headfirst into the fray and held her blade to his neck, Ruby calmly finished her apple and stood. She wasn't really in a hurry to fight against Roman at the moment, but they did have to stall for their backup to arrive. Unfolding Crescent Rose, the small reaper vanished in a swirl of petals.

Sun froze his entire body stilling as dark petals fell to the ground around him followed shortly by the bodies of the White Fang agents. Landing in a crouch Ruby didn't see the way his face paled at the vindictive smirk on her face. Hearing a groan from one of the goons she'd knocked out her breathed a sigh of relief at the fact they were still alive. For a moment he'd thought that he'd once again surrounded himself with murderers.

Standing Ruby laid her weapon on her shoulders and winked at the goons daring them to attack her. Rising to her challenge they howled out a war cry as they charged at her head-on. The sharpened blade of her scythe shinned an eerie silver as she twisted the shaft spinning around her neck to catch one of them around the waist. Tossing him at his friends she felt minorly relieved that he had an aura and she hadn't just cut him in half; becoming a murderer at fifteen wasn't something she wanted to do. Chuckling she activated her semblance allowing the extra speed to let her cut through the goons around her as if they were nothing but paper while using the blunt side of her weapon this time.

"You guys were way too easy, you should try training more," she said while using her foot to prod the downed body of one of the faunus; his answering groan caused her to laugh. Glancing over at the battle between Blake, Sun, and Roman she narrowed her gaze.

It was easy to spot the goons that were trying to sneak up on her friends and she reacted. Using the recoil from her scythe's gunshot she launched herself into the air before using another shot to send herself crashing down behind her teammate like lightning. Seeing the White Fang members eyes widen at her appearance she twisted causing the blunt side of her scythe to crash into their bodies. Hearing a bone crack, she winced but otherwise didn't react as they hit the pavement harshly. All her hits were non-lethal so they should be fine.

Glancing over her shoulder at the battle behind her she winced as she saw Blake be kicked away into a metal crate. Seeing the girl's weapon slip from her grasp as her aura shattered Ruby tightened her grip on her scythe and moved to intercept the shot from Roman's cane. Sun caught Blake as she crumbled to the ground and Ruby deflected Roman's shot upward as she landed between him and the two faunus. Taking a moment to assess the situation she frowned. Blake was in no position to fight and Sun would spend all his time protecting the girl instead of helping.

"Take Blake and leave," she ordered turning her attention to the thief. Biting his lip the monkey faunus nodded before running from the battle; even he knew that right now he would be in the way rather than of any help. Seeing Roman raise an eyebrow she offered him an amused grin that caused him to give a lazy smile. Ignoring the goons trying to pick themselves up off the ground she said, "it was nice of you to wait."

"Good to see you too Red," he told her with a huff of amusement. The wild expression that crossed her face was the only warning he had before she was in front of him with her scythe poised to cut through his neck. Blocking the attack with his cane he barely noticed the sparks flying across his weapon as he shoved her away.

Stabbing the pummel of her scythe into the ground she swung around it before using the momentum to launch herself at him. Raising his cane to block he winced at the force bearing down on his arms only to feel his legs give out as she finally knocked him backward. Rolling to a stop he didn't even take the time to aim as he fired three shots in her direction. While two were easy to avoid the third skimmed past her face highlighting the wicked expression on her face.

He'd been right when he first met her, Neo would love this girl. He hadn't had this much fun fighting someone in a long time yet even he could tell she was holding back; however, it was the wild charge that outlined her inexperience. Sidestepping the downward slash that tore apart the pavement he grabbed the shaft of her scythe before kicking her in the chest. For a moment her eyes widened as she hung suspended in the air then her fingers lost their grip on her weapon and she was sent flying.

Crashing into the crate behind her harshly she gasped as all the air was forced from her lungs. Biting her lip, the reaper barely caught herself before she crumbled to the ground. Tasting copper, she licked at her lip while steadying herself; he kicked hard. Watching him toss her weapon to the side she felt her fingers twitch; most people would panic after losing their weapon yet somehow the situation set her blood on fire. Catching sight of a flash of white in the corner of her vision she ducked causing the machete to impact the crate with a clang. Grabbing the goon's wrist, she didn't hesitate to reach up with her other hand and grab his hair. The muffled groan he let out when she slammed his head into the crate was satisfying.

Stepping away from the downed man she noticed the group of goons around her who seemed to think they were threatening. Stomping down on the blade of the discarded machete she caught the weapon by the hilt when it flew upward. The feeling of the weapon in her hand caused her to grimace; it really was a piece of trash. Seeing Roman send an annoyed look toward the goons as well she tensed as they all charged at once causing her to lose sight of the thief.

Blocking a bullet, Ruby simmered in anger. She'd been enjoying her fight with Roman; how dare they interfere with her fun. They weren't even a threat either in fact the only thing they had the upper hand on was their numbers other than that they were nothing. She really hoped that not all White Fang members were this foolish or useless. All she wanted was a challenge, but they couldn't even provide that, could they? Finally allowing her annoyance to show on her face she lashed out the blade of the machete sparking as it impacted the one held by the goon unlucky enough to draw her attention.

The man stumbled causing him to crash his friend just before a golden shield slammed into them both. Dropping the machete, Ruby didn't even flinch as the shield flew past her and back into the hand of her partner. Silence hung in the air for a moment before Cardin charged past her with a vindictive smirk. At least he was getting a healthy outlet for his hate of the White Fang. Raising an eyebrow at the almost psychotic laugh that filled the air she briefly wondered if he needed counseling.

"One day! We let you out of our site for one day and you pick a fight with the fucking White Fang," Pyrrha hissed causing Ruby to flinch. Catching sight of Roman, she gave the older girl a sheepish smile before vanishing in a swirl of petals. Unsheathing her dagger, she appeared above the man only for her action to be followed by Jaune's worried cry.

A dark petal falling in front of his face was the only warning Roman had before she slashed downward with the weapon. The attack was barely blocked by the thief's cane before he angled the weapon to the side causing her to skid to the ground. This was getting far out of hand; it was past time that he retreated. As if reading his mind the girl lashed out with a wild swing that was far weaker than her earlier attacks.

"Want to call it a night Roman," she asked just loud enough he could hear her.

"Might be for the best," he said winking at the girl. The answering laugh sounded far too sweet for such a vicious little girl.

Nodding slightly Ruby flipped away from him giving him time to call out the order to retreat. There weren't many faunus left to answer his call but in their defense, they did try to get away from Pyrrha and Cardin's wrath. Watching him run for the airship, Ruby made no move to stop him, instead, she sheathed her weapon. She had no intention of capturing him tonight, that being said, she did hope he had time to play again in the future. Walking over to her scythe she casually slammed her palm into the chest of one of the goons when he tried to attack her.

After Roman escaped it took twenty more minutes for the cops to arrive; by that time Jaune had tied up the White Fang members. Even Blake and Sun had returned although Blake did have a mild concussion which was confirmed by the paramedics when they arrived. Pyrrha had been kind enough to wait until Blake was confirmed to make a full recovery before she snapped.

Tapping her foot against the pavement she calmly asked, "what were you thinking?"

Ruby shrank away from the tone as the older girl glared down at her waiting for an answer. It wasn't helping that Cardin was snickering at her predicament. Shifting nervously, she suddenly felt like a child who'd been caught stealing cookies. Resisting the urge to point at Blake and blame her for everything, she tugged at a loose strand of her hair.

"Um," Ruby started only to be cut off by Jaune.

"Grounded," he snapped sounding like an offended mother. Crossing his arms, he ignored the shocked and offended look sent at him by his faunus teammate. Instead, he said, "all three of you are grounded for a week!"

"I'm not a Beacon St-"

"Week and a half," Jaune said cutting off the monkey faunus. Paling Sun decided to cut his losses and nodded nervously in agreement with his fellow blonde.

Blinking at the commanding tone used by the Arc, Ruby allowed a small smile to appear on her face despite the fact she'd just been grounded by her teammate. She was happy that Jaune was finally growing as a person. Being so focused on her blonde teammate she didn't notice the realization appearing on Cardin's face.

"It's the hat," he stated with a grin. Seeing the confusion on their faces he sent Ruby a pointed look causing her eyes to widen as a blush spread across her face; he was talking about the crush she had on Roman.

"No, it's his smirk," she said without thinking. Slapping a hand over her mouth at the confession she hid her face in her hands as the boy laughed at her.


	16. Doubts

Sun wasn't intimidated by much, given that he grew up in Vacuo there wasn't much that could scare him. After all, the entire kingdom was a hotbed for thieves and assassins. The only issue now was here he was watching his partner chat with the blonde of Blake's team, which wouldn't have been so bad if they weren't both mother hens. It had been a week since the incident at the docks; he no longer had any complaints about the teachers at Haven, none of them were half as intimidating as the blonde woman who'd showed up at the docks. Team RABN had offered them a place in their dorm until his own team arrived which had only happened today. He'd discovered a lot, and he did mean a lot, just from watching the four interact.

Ruby was although cheerful always tense when around other people, unless it was Cardin. She was so tense that it made him tense usually in the way that caused his tail fur to bristle. It was made worse by the fact Cardin seemed all too ready to tease anyone within a two-mile radius that wasn't Ruby. Given that the girl seemed to be the center of his world it wasn't that surprising when he caught them sneaking up to the roof together. At first, he'd thought the two were dating until he observed a joint training session between CRDL and RABN; no straight guy looked at their male teammate like that. Ruby herself, when away from Cardin, was slightly overprotective of her team however the little redhead was alright in his opinion as long as she didn't try to put ribbons on his tail like Neptune's sisters had.

He'd been wary of Pyrrha when he first met her, mainly due to Arslan. It was obvious that the girl was a simmering bowl of anxiety wrapped in politeness at least around him. He'd heard of the renown Nikos clan in Mistral and the champion they'd created in Pyrrha. Most of the things he'd heard about the green-eyed girl were from Arslan's rants. The lion faunus really did not like Pyrrha at all mostly due to the fact she'd lost to the redhead every single time they'd fought. Apparently coming in second place wasn't good enough for Arslan. He was pretty sure she'd tapped a picture of Pyrrha's face to her wall and used it for target practice. Personally, he'd never witnessed any of her tournament matches however he'd seen photos taken afterward. It was easy to see that the smile she wore in those photos was completely different than the one she wore right now. For one it wasn't fake.

Jaune was the mother hen currently chatting with his own mother hen teammate. Worse still was the fact he was sure Neptune was in complete agreement over the sentence of grounding the three had been given. While the least skilled out of his teammates the blonde was the one who showed the most emotion. There was nothing fake about the boy's emotions unlike his three teammates. His blue eyes showed exactly what he was feeling, it was slightly terrifying to see someone so open. It took some unbelievable courage to show your true self at every moment of the day.

Blake was the one who hid her emotions the most out of the three girls. Where Ruby picked a happy mask, the dark haired faunus had a blank face when talking to almost everyone. So far it was only her teammates and him that she seemed to open up to. There was a silent war between her and Cardin too from what he'd observed. Neither the faunus or human approved of each other and only kept weapons out of their conflict to appease Ruby. He had no doubt that the amazing golden eyed girl would win against the human. Out of all four, Blake was the one he liked the most, however that might be because of the slight crush he was developing on the girl.

The awkwardness between Blake and Jaune had faded after their conversation which resulted in the blonde crying. It had been mildly horrifying to learn team RABN had a non-lying policy not to mention their habit of sitting in a circle and telling their deepest secrets to each other. He had a hard-enough time avoiding learning his teammates secrets on a good day. There was no way he'd sign up to a secrets nest willingly. Knowing that Neptune would happily implement something like their nest was terrifying; learning that Ruby, the person with the most secrets, was the one who started it was confusing, but it wasn't his business what she decided to do.

He had noticed the tiny redhead sneaking out this morning but hadn't brought attention to her. Unlike him, Ruby wasn't grounded anymore, plus he actually thought she might kill him if he interrupted her stealth plans. The large briefcase sitting on her bed, sloppily covered with blankets, wasn't at all suspicious; in fact, he'd never seen anything less suspicious in his life. He was just glad she had waited until the day he left to unveil whatever she was keeping hidden. While he loved the chaos, he'd been subjected too over the past week, he was tired of Jaune and Pyrrha's budding romance. There was such a thing as something being too cute.

(Ruby)

It was a nice Saturday in Vale completely without her team to accompany her. She didn't know if she should be happy, they hadn't noticed her vanish from the room or slightly annoyed however none of that mattered. With her team about to enter and win the Vytal festival, she wanted to celebrate half a year of them being in a team together. Given it could be their first and last year at Beacon she wanted to make this special for them. She'd already bought everything she needed yesterday when she'd snuck out with Cardin. Now she was just taking a day for herself without anyone else to worry about.

The moments when everything was quiet, she felt both peace and pain. It was also the time when she questioned herself the most; especially about what the future would bring. Her knowledge ended with the Vytal festival; with the death of Pyrrha and Roman. To make things worse the festival was only two months away, there wasn't enough time for her to sit down and enjoy her time at Beacon, but she didn't know what to do. if she let the Fall happen then hundreds could die, but if she didn't that would mean Salem would know she was a threat. It was true she didn't know much about the woman, but she knew enough to realize that starting a fight with her this early wasn't a good idea. She wasn't ready for a long drawn out battle with Salem or her forces.

Taking another bite of her ice cream she shifted closer to the pond she'd found deep in Vale's nature park. She'd tried looking for Neo for about three hours before giving up and hiding out; she was mature enough to admit she was hiding from the world and not just her team right now. Letting Beacon Fall, although she hated to admit, was the best option to keep her secret. Cardin wouldn't care if she let Beacon burn to the ground then decided to dance on the ashes; he was just the special kind of vindictive that made him a good ally. Her team however would care, so would Weiss' team, they might even hate her if they ever found out. The thought should make her question her decision, but it didn't; they would never learn that she knew about the Fall of Beacon. The only person who would ever find out would be Cardin and the people she chose to tell, so why did the thought of lying to them make her feel so horrible?

Laying the bowl of ice-cream on the ground the frowned as she realized, despite choosing to let Beacon fall, she had no idea what to do afterward. There was so much she didn't know about the story and about the world itself. There had to be something more she could do besides wait and react to everything that happened. It would be good to have a plan for after Beacon; Ozpin certainly wouldn't be around to help due to him dying via Cinder. It also didn't help that she had no idea who the other people who served Salem were because she knew Cinder wasn't the only one.

The only thing she could really do was take things one step at a time, which meant the next major thing to happen would be meeting Penny. Of course, she'd already missed meeting the adorable android like in canon. There was a chance she could simply walk around Vale and hopefully run into the girl but there was a greater chance she wouldn't find her. After Penny was the mech fight with Roman, something she was hoping to avoid, but she knew Blake was still investigating the White Fang. Then came the dance; she really needed a dress for that. She wouldn't have a date however since by that point Cardin would have decided to ask Russel on a date. He'd confessed that he was thinking about it, last night. After the dance was the Breach; otherwise known as 'let's release grimm into the city', at this point she was really considering taking up her fathers drinking habit in a more public way. It was be cute if they had matching flasks.

The festival itself would be easy and to solve the issue of Pyrrha ripping apart an adorable android, she would be taking the older girls place in the finals. That would keep Pyrrha from becoming a murderer, but it wouldn't keep Ozpin from trying to turn her into a weapon. Well, Maidens weren't weapons but the point was she didn't want Pyrrha in Cinder's way. The thought of Cinder also brought up the point that she wanted the woman on her side, just like she wanted Roman and Neo. While she didn't know what Salem promised Cinder, she did know that at the end of this conflict the world would be in shambles; Cinder could help with that rebuilding process.

Hearing a soft meow, she glanced over at the small black cat that had moved out of the bushes. It's striking green eyes glanced at her for a moment before it stalked forward with confidence to look into the bowl she'd left on the ground. Blinking at the sassy movement from the cat she giggled when it's tail lashed out to hit her on the nose.

"Hey, little one," she said causing the cat to glance at her before diving his head into her bowl. Raising an eyebrow at the action she couldn't keep the dry sarcasm from her voice as she said, "oh sure eat the ice cream, not like I was going to finish it or anything."

The cat, of course, ignored her sarcastic words in favor of finishing off her strawberry ice cream. That was fine though she didn't expect it to respond. From the lack of a collar she guessed that it was a stray, but the fur was extremally clean, without even a spot of dirt. It was obvious that someone had been taking care of the poor cat. Wait… this was a cat who couldn't respond to her words but also couldn't tell her to shut her mouth or say she was wrong. It was literally the best person to vent to about her problems right now.

"I think I'm a horrible person," she admitted after looking around to make sure it was just her and the cat. When it flicked its tail, she allowed a soft sad smile to form on her face as she said, "I'm going to let hundreds die just so that I don't change the timeline and stay out of Salem's notice. Do you think that makes me foolish?"

It sounded foolish to be said aloud but simply letting out the words made her feel somewhat better. She couldn't tell Cardin how scared of making the wrong choice she was because he would die for her and she couldn't tell her team because she was scared, they would reject her.

"I mean I know you're a cat, you can't respond, but I…I know what I'm doing is wrong and I'm going to do it anyway because I don't want to be noticed by Salem or Ozpin," she said softly. Part of her wondered why she was here talking to a cat that would most likely try to scratch her face off if she even reached out to pet it. There was so much more she could be doing with her life right now but instead she was talking to a cat who had stolen her ice cream. Looking back up at the sky she said, "It's not that I don't care, I do, but I only care about the people I know. If Vale burned to the ground I wouldn't care because the people I love are okay. I know that makes me a terrible person, but I can't change who I am. The body was supposed to belong to a girl who inspired hope and tried to help people, but I can't be that girl; even if…."

Glancing back at her when she hesitated the cat blinked with all too intelligent green eyes before abandoning the bowl all together. Licking his paws, he moved closer to the girl as bitter tears burned the corners of her eyes.

"I…I'm afraid that I'll make the wrong choice and get everyone killed."

(Tyrian)

Atlas had been cold but at least the city had interior heating. Standing on one of the coldest mountain peaks in Anima was not helping him keep his sanity together. It had been a month since he'd last contacted his goddess and he longed for nothing other than to go home; but he knew he was close to completing his mission. If he located the Winter Maiden and brought her home with him then all the time spent apart from his queen would be worth it. Yet it didn't help that just moving toward the Maidens location was like being pushed back by a blizzard.

That was part literal and figurative since the icy hurricane in front of him could be considered a blizzard. Apparently, this was a phenomenon that started around nine years ago, he was willing to bet it was the Maiden. To make it more interesting however no one who entered the circular blizzard had ever returned. That was why almost no one knew about it; however, today was the day that changed. He would get through this wall of cold, grab the Maiden, and return to his queen no matter the cost. Tugging his jacket closer to his body he stepped forward.


	17. Gifts

Jaune stared down the barrel of his new gun, that Ruby had gotten him, pulled the trigger. It was nice to have some kind of ranged option, but he really wished that he'd used a gun before now. The dust bullets she'd gotten him along with the seemingly endless handbook on gun safety were a little too much, but he appreciated having options. Pyrrha blocked his shot with her shield although it was easy to notice that when she charged forward, she slowed just enough that he could reload his gun before she reached him. Ruby and Blake watched their teammates spar while sitting on the bench in the back of the training room.

"I think Pyrrha's still mad at us," Ruby said softly. The redhead hadn't let go of their little stunt at the docks even though they'd called for backup. It was one of the reasons she was using Jaune as a warmup before her spar against Ruby; not that she would ever tell Jaune that when he thought he was making such good progress. While it was true, he was getting better, he still wasn't at their level yet, not that she blamed him for that.

"Yeah," Blake mumbled putting the final features on her sketch. She could still feel the bruises from when Pyrrha decided it was her turn to spar. The redhead could hit very hard when she wanted to and apparently, she had wanted to. It was almost scary how good at combat Pyrrha was for having grown up inside the kingdoms.

Curiosity getting the better of her Ruby looked over her partner's shoulder at the sketch. It was the same one Blake had drawn back at the start of volume two in canon; except bigger. Even from here, she could see Adam's broad shoulders and the resilient set of his jaw. Part of her wanted to meet the other faunus just to see if Blake's drawings were accurate. Even in just a picture, she could see why her teammate would fall for him.

"Who's that," she asked, and Blake almost jumped. Giggling at her teammate's reaction she didn't show any guilt as Blake gave her a minor glare before rolling her eyes in exasperation.

"My old partner Adam," she said shading in some of the lines around his face. She missed Adam, and the time they'd spent together. It was so hard to believe that he'd become a monster to further the White Fang's agenda, but she'd seen him kill those people. She'd watched as he dived into darkness unable to do anything. There was nothing she could do to bring him back to the kind man he'd been, so she'd run in the hopes that he would never find her. Glancing up at her leader she said, "the one I left to come to Beacon."

Ruby hummed in understanding. She knew that Blake would have to face her past one day but she wouldn't let the faunus be alone when that day came. Adam might be dangerous, but she was too and she would never allow him to lay a finger on her teammate. She'd meant what she said on that first night they were a team; she was not going to share Blake with the White Fang. Her teammate was too scared to return to the White Fang anyway.

"What was he like," Ruby asked, taking a chance to look up at the spar. Jaune was blocking Pyrrha's blade with his own. That wouldn't last long especially when Pyrrha had a sweet smile on her face as if she was an angel sent from the heavens. The distracted blush on her blonde teammate's face was all the confirmation she needed that he wasn't going to win the fight.

"He's strong and powerful, yet calm," Blake said a small smile on her face. It was easy to remember the Adam that she'd fallen in love with rather than the man who'd become a monster. However, she couldn't focus on the past instead she said, "he couldn't stand to see faunus mistreated and as the leader of the white fang branch in Vale, he was able to do a lot to help. At the same time, he was becoming more vicious and crueler."

She still remembered the screams of the men he'd slaughtered but she tried to push that thought back. There had been nothing she could do to stop him and trying would have only gotten herself and others killed. She might regret not being able to stop him but that didn't mean she blamed anyone other than him for those decisions. Her weakness had been loving him despite the monster he'd become; she wouldn't make that mistake again.

"How strong," Ruby asked wondering how she would fare against the man. She loved a good fight, and Adam would put up a good fight. The similarities between his fighting style and what she'd seen from Raven also bothered her; there could be a connection between the two. Shifting slightly, she asked, "could we win if we fought him?"

During canon, Adam attacked Beacon with the White Fang. It was likely that they could do nothing to change that fact, and she didn't know if she would be with Blake when Adam found her. She knew that dealing with Roman would take some time, but she would hope Jaune and Pyrrha followed her orders and stayed beside Blake during the Fall.

"You might," Blake said looking up at her leader with worried eyes. Ruby had the same expression she gained when waiting for a fight. Adam had the same expression sometimes when he wanted a good fight as well; just another thing that connected her leader with her past partner. She didn't know if it would be a good thing for the two to fight. By that, she meant it was unknown if the school would survive the two fighting.

"Me?"

Tilting her head, Ruby blinked as her teammate stifled a laugh. The amused glow in her golden eyes didn't vanish even as they heard Pyrrha slam Jaune into the wall on the other side of the room. Blake could see that her teammate didn't have the slightest idea of how terrifying she could be during a fight. Although she'd been unconscious during Ruby's fight with Roman, she'd heard about it from Sun who seemed to have developed a slight fear of the small redhead.

"Adams too stubborn to back down," she said. He really didn't know the meaning of the word surrender, but then again neither did Ruby. She stood by the idea that Beacon wouldn't survive a fight between the two. With Adam's semblance and Ruby's habit of rushing into a fight just for fun, she was sure nothing could stop them once they got started. Smirking slightly, she said, "your speed would be perfect against his attacks. He can't hit what he can't catch."

The idea of fighting Adam seemed like it would be fun, but that might just be because she loved to fight. In this life, she had complete control over her own destiny and fighting was just something she found enjoyable. It was after all a step up from following orders like a good little puppet. Well, there was also the fact that fighting made her blood sing. It was strange and she didn't really understand it but she knew that when in battle she had complete control over her own body.

Seeing the almost wicked smirk crossing her leader's face, Blake sighed. Ruby really was a battle junkie, she doubted the girl even knew what kind of expression she was making right now. Closing her sketchbook, she decided to change the subject by asking, "are you ever going to tell me what else is in that overly suspicious metal case?"

Raising an eyebrow, Ruby rolled her eyes at the attempt but decided to let it go, even if she had already started to tense at the thought of a good fight. It would only be a few more minutes until Jaune reached his limit anyway and then she could fight Pyrrha. Still, it was nice to know that someone else thought the case was suspicious.

"You'll see once we get back to the dorm today," Ruby said amusement dripping from her words. At this very moment, Cardin was decorating their dorm with the help of his team, while Yang ran around inviting their friends. She was vaguely sure that even Sun and his team would be coming to the little party she'd planned. Seeing the wary look on her teammate's face she rolled her eyes saying, "it's an end of semester gift for you and Pyrrha."

"You didn't have to do that," Blake said immediately. She hadn't even thought of getting Ruby or any of the others a gift for making it through a semester at Beacon. Ruby simply smiled and looked up just in time to see Pyrrha disarm Jaune although a lot more gently than she would other people. Blake seeing the same thing winced, the redhead was still angry at them for the docks and she was slightly scared of what would happen if she stepped in the ring with the other girl. Turning her attention back to Ruby she had no problem throwing her under the bus by saying, "you can go next though."

The chuckle that Ruby let out sounded more like a cackle, as she smirked. It was all too easy for her to realize that Blake was trying to throw her at their champion of a teammate. Shrugging she stood as Jaune limped over to sit beside Blake. Ruffling his hair, she walked over to stand in front of the taller redhead. Eyeing her teammate, she noted the light film of sweet on her teammate's face; Jaune had done better than she thought he would.

Grinning at the older girl she asked, "so what're the rules?"

"Knock out or submission," the redhead said immediately. She'd been so worried when she got the call for backup. Every instinct had screamed at her to get to her teammates, but she'd felt dread too. There was a part of her that thought once she'd got there, they wouldn't be alive. Ruby treated this like it was game, but fighting the White Fang was more than just dangerous, it could get them killed. She hated that neither of them seemed to realize that they could have gotten killed. Glaring at Ruby she didn't know how to tell her leader just how afraid she was of losing her teammates.

Unfolding Crescent Rose, she blocked the swing of the older girl's spear. The force of the blow caused her to stumble but she didn't hesitate to mount a counterattack. Kicking the redhead away she swung down only for her scythe to halt in midair. Raising an eyebrow as Pyrrha used her semblance to hold the scythe in place. The black glow of the redhead's semblance was all too visible, but Ruby only showed a bit of amusement.

"You're really not happy right now huh," Ruby asked her sarcastic tone causing the older girl to narrow her gaze.

Seeing the girl about to strike Ruby abandoned her scythe. She didn't need her scythe to fight, after all, she'd trained for being disarmed. Doing a quick backflip, she landed across the arena from the girl with a wink. Unsheathing Thorn she held the dagger in a reverse grip as Pyrrha tightened her hands around her weapon. Smirking she stated, "you can't use your semblance if an object is moving too fast."

Condensing most of her aura into her feet she activated her semblance while forsaking the protection that aura would offer. Petals drifted to the ground behind her as she launched herself at her partner. She knew that Pyrrha was worried about her, in a way the anger held by the older girl was understandable. The only issue was that she didn't need Pyrrha to protect her, and the older girl had to realize that fact. Pyrrha held up her shield but it didn't do much when Ruby kicked her in the back, pain rushed through her body. As her partner stumbled forward Ruby activated the last of her ice dust to freeze the girl's legs in place before vanishing. This style of fighting was different than her partner was used to seeing from her as such she doubted the girl would be able to react very quickly.

As Pyrrha struggled to free herself she left herself open to the slashes Ruby made to her aura as the smaller girl danced around her like a swarming bee. Growling the redhead swung her arms out and her polarity ripped Thorn from her leader's hand before attacking. Throwing her shield at her leader who didn't even have time to react she felt no guilt watching it impact the girl. Ruby flinched and flew back when Pyrrha's golden shield slammed into her chest. Rolling as she landed Ruby grabbed the shield before the girl could recall it and threw it at Pyrrha's legs.

"Wow," Jaune said awe in his tone. He knew how hard that shield hit, and he was shocked Ruby had been able to recover so quickly. Blinking he turned to Blake asking, "who do you think is going to win?"

"Ruby," Blake answered watching the way her Ruby's eyes went cold. It was the exact expression that Ruby had when she fought with Roman at the docks. There were two sides to her leader during a fight; the bloodthirsty grin that meant she was fighting to disarm and the cold expression that meant she was serious although the wicked smirk was slightly terrifying. Smirking she said, "she's about to stop holding back."

Ruby twisted to dodge the strike from Pyrrha's spear. She knew that Pyrrha was trying to prove that Ruby's actions at the docks were reckless and that she could have died. However, Ruby needed her partner to know that she wasn't weak. Channeling what was left of her aura into the gravity lines on her jacket Ruby began to float up to the ceiling much to her teammate's annoyance. Twisting the spear in her hand Pyrrha didn't hesitate to toss it at the younger girl, who simply leaned out of the way. Flipping so that her feet touched the ceiling she kicked off deactivating the dust and falling toward her partner before Pyrrha could recall the spear. Tilting her head to the side Ruby dodged Pyrrha's punch and pinned her to the ground.

Pyrrha groaned as her head hit the ground hard. Dazed she lay there for a long moment as Ruby smirked down at her, before narrowing her green eyes into a glare. Almost growling she said, "Ruby get off."

"No," Ruby said calmly while her grip on the older girl tightened. Frowning down at her partner she said, "I'm sorry we got into a fight with the White Fang. I know you were worried, but I called you for backup, I trusted you to get there in time to help. There are going to be times when I do things you don't agree with, but that doesn't mean I make those choices recklessly. You have to trust that I know what I'm doing, and I won't throw away my life on a whim."

Stilling Pyrrha sighed in defeat. Her family might care about her, but they didn't understand her the same way that her team did. They were the first people to understand that she didn't care for her fame; she didn't want to lose them. But she also couldn't stop Ruby from making her own choices or make her back down when she set her mind to something. She had to have faith that Ruby was able to defend herself without them being around. Still, she couldn't stop herself from whispering, "just…promise you'll be careful."

"I promise," Ruby said and rolled off the older girl. She had no intention of dying this early on in her second life. Smirking she looked over at Pyrrha as the redhead stood before asking, "does this mean I win?"

Scoffing Pyrrha offered her hand to the younger girl while saying, "that was a tie."

Taking her hand, Ruby smirked more out of amusement than anything else. Hearing Blake and Jaune come to stand beside them, she winked at the almost puppy-like expression on the blonde's face. crossing her arms, she said, "I think it's time we go back to the dorm, by now the surprise should be in place."

Watching their confused expressions for a moment she couldn't stop herself from laughing at them. When Blake rolled her eyes and started for the dorm, Ruby followed her happily. As they returned to the dorm Ruby was skipping, happy her team drama was resolved. She hated the tension that had been festering between her team for these past few days. In her opinion, a party was what they all needed to relax. Entering the dorm room, she blinked at the cake sitting on the dresser but ignored it in favor of squeaking as Sun scooped her up and spun her around. Grabbing his arms, she laughed as he set her down gently.

"Thanks for inviting us tiny demon," he said happily. Blinking at the new nickname she tilted her head before smirking. That was a name that she could get behind; she liked that one. Hearing her sister laugh she threw a glance at the blonde who was lounging on her bed. Catching the wink her sister threw in her direction, she rolled her eyes.

Entering the room slowly, her teammates glanced around in slight confusion at the number of people occupying their dorm. All of team WYVN was there with Ren and Nora currently entertaining two boys who they could only guess belonged to Sun's team, while Neptune supervised Sun. The mama bear attitude the boy seemed to have toward his teammates was all to prevalent as he silently scolded Sun for ambushing Ruby. Weiss and Yang had taken a seat on Ruby's bed which the reaper honestly didn't care about; although the unsure expression on Weiss's face was something that worried her. The white-haired girl couldn't stop sending unsure looks at Blake; she didn't know if it was because Blake was a faunus or some other reason. Cardin's team was hovering in the corner as if they were trying to hide, but Russel kept an eye on his leader who was sitting on the open windowsill.

Meeting his eyes for a moment, Ruby raised an eyebrow at his isolated position but all he did was flicker his eyes to her sister. Cardin hated Yang and the blonde felt the same about him, he would rather sit here silently than ruin Ruby's surprise for her team. Besides she needed this to go well for her just as much as she needed it to go well for her teammates. He'd noticed that she was doubting herself lately and hoped that by having this party her doubts would go away. She hadn't told him everything about what she knew would come in the future, but he could tell she was unsure of herself and her choices, yet that didn't mean she would change them.

Letting her teammates walk past her into the room she smiled as she closed the door behind them. She might not be sure about her choices, but she knew that the people in this room were hers; they were important to her. Even Cardin's teammates were important to her, despite how jealous they were of his attention on her. Russel had even been warming up to her since the incident in Forever Fall and she was pretty sure he hated her before then.

Moving toward her bed, she pulled the metal case from under it, despite the eyes on her back. She honestly couldn't think of a better time to do this, although she did wish that the gifts for her sister's team were done. Laying the case on her bed she ignored the raised eyebrow from Pyrrha in favor of opening it slowly. She knew that hiding something under her bed wasn't the best idea but she honestly had no idea where else to put it.

Picking up the bronze-colored box that held Pyrrha's gift, she passed it to her confused teammate before doing the same with Blake. The faunus blinked in surprise but took the box as Jaune twitched slightly. Blinking when he wasn't given one, the boy pouted at feeling left out but the expression vanished when Pyrrha opened her box. Blinking in slight awe of the golden weapon sitting inside he watched as Ruby fidgeted nervously.

"What's this," Pyrrha asked causing Ruby to blush at her question.

"An end of semester gift," she said before turning to Jaune before he could start pouting again. Giving him a soft smile, she said, "you already got yours in the form of a gun."

The knowing chuckle from her sister caused her face to redden even as Cardin smirked from his spot. Much to his amusement Ruby wasn't an antisocial person, she got attached to someone quickly, and once hooked, she didn't let go. He had at least fourteen daggers back at his house that she'd given him over the past few years. Most people gave, sweats or clothing, Ruby gave weapons: not that he blamed her for the weapons.

"We didn't get you anything," Pyrrha protested as she tore her eyes away from the glittering metal.

"You guys are my team," Ruby said lightly her face bright red. Glancing over at Cardin, she noticed the amusement in his eyes. Shifting slightly, she said, "that's enough."

Blake stiffened at the words before looking down at the weapon she'd been given. There was no lie in Ruby's voice and from the way everyone stopped to look at her they had noticed it too. Glancing at Yang she noticed the softened glow in the other girl's eyes. Was this something Ruby did often? She had no ulterior motive for giving them the weapons and she wanted nothing in return. Looking over at Cardin she blinked at the fond expression on his face; she'd never seen an expression like that on the boy.

"Aw...are you embarrassed," Jaune teased causing the younger girl to pout. Looking away from them she huffed and walked to stand beside Cardin.

Glancing back at her teammates Ruby smiled as Pyrrha tossed her new dagger in the air. The metal was golden in color with several jagged lines that showed how many times the metal had been folded over itself which would give her polarity something to control. The hilt was red metal formed to fit the hand and curved up into the guard which then curved back down to guard her hand; it was a weapon built to block strikes from a close range. Pyrrha's emblem was etched into the metal just above the hilt. The weapon itself was designed to be hidden in her boot or arm guard; either way, it was a flashy weapon meant to gain attention from those around her. Blake's gift, however, was designed to be hidden; it was an assassin's blade. The dark metal of the slender blade transitioned into a black wrapped leather hilt that wasn't meant to be seen and wouldn't be if it's wielder fought in the dark. Blake's emblem was sewn into the sheath that was made of dark purple leather. Because of the special metal, the dagger was made with she couldn't use it much, since the metal itself was illegal.

With a twist of her hand, Pyrrha used her semblance to stop the weapon in midair causing Weiss to stand and make her way over followed by Yang. Turning away from her teammates, Ruby leaned against the window for a long moment as Cardin hummed softly. Reaching out he laid a hand on her arm before tugging her into a one-armed hug. The gentle movement caused Russel to tense, but he relaxed just as quickly.

"Ruby are you free to come with me to Vale this weekend," Cardin asked. While she'd been thinking about her future plans, he'd been plotting his own. It might not be what she wanted but he'd made the best decision for him and his team with the knowledge that he had.

"Of course," she said immediately. The look in his eyes let her know that he had something important to tell her. Hearing footsteps, she glanced up only to blink as Russel offered her a plate. The dull expression on his face didn't change even as she took the cake, but he did relax at the way Cardin's lips twitched upward.

"This doesn't mean we're friends," he said bluntly.


	18. Winter

When he woke up, he didn't expect it to be in a warm bed covered with furs; honestly, he didn't expect to wake up at all. Walking into that icy hurricane had been an all or nothing sort of play and after wandering around for what felt like hours, he'd been beginning to think it was a mistake. At least someone had found him after he'd passed out from the cold. He was also vaguely sure he had frostbite due to the ache in his limbs, but he had bigger things to worry about. Keeping his eyes closed he pretended to still be asleep as he studied his surroundings.

He could hear the crackle of a fire, most likely from a fireplace, but more interesting was the sound of humming. The voice was soft, feminine, and it sounded young too. Had he stumbled out of the hurricane and been found by a child? If the Winter Maiden was a child, then things would be all the more complicated. Hearing someone stand he barely kept himself from reacting as a small hand touched his forehead. The instinctive urge to grab the offending limb and twist until the owner screamed was almost overwhelming but he pushed it down.

Opening his eyes slowly he met startled green eyes before their owner squeaked and stumbled away from him. She was young, around ten years old. Sitting up slowly he watched the girl with a surprisingly blank face as she dove behind a chair with her short blonde hair flying out behind her. The reaction wasn't normal, it was almost as if she'd never met another person. If the girl was around ten and the Winter Maiden had run away from Atlas after a relationship went wrong. The child was most likely hers.

"Eliza."

It was panic that colored her tone, yet when his eyes turned to her, she seemed far more caution than panic. Dark brown eyes met his own before they snapped back to the younger blonde. It was obvious that they were related given the similar bone structure and the apparent care in her voice. She was more attractive than Cinder, with her long blonde hair that reminded him of woven gold. Crossing the room quickly she reached down to lay a hand on her daughter's head while acting as if she was ignoring him. Her eyes shifting to him for a moment gave away the act.

"Why don't you go get our guest something to eat," she said softly. The calm tone was unable to hide the sheer annoyance she felt but her daughter didn't notice. Giving a nervous nod to her mother the girl shifted before rushing from the room. Smirking as the woman's expression changed becoming hostile the very second that her daughter left the room. Narrowing her gaze at his expression she said, "usually I would push those found outside my home back into the snow and leave them to die, however, this time my daughter found you."

"How ruthless," he muttered causing her to flinch before she crossed her arms.

"I do what I have to in order to protect my daughter," she said as if she had to justify her actions.

"It's nice to meet you miss Winter Maiden."

Flinching at the words she glared down at him. Her brown eyes met his own as they took on a golden tint much like his own. It was likely that she'd never actually killed anyone if this was how she reacted to his presence. Once he got stronger it would be easy to overpower her and force her to return with him to Salem's castle. As if sensing his thoughts, she frowned, but quickly hid the expression as her daughter came back carrying a bowl.

(Ruby)

It wasn't in an explosive fight that she met the very people that would bring Beacon crashing to the ground, it was in a training room. Even if it was only two of them; of course, she knew that they weren't exactly hiding but it was still a little surprising to see Mercury and Cinder sequestered in the training room reserved for Haven students. Sun had pointed the place out to her when he offered joint training between their two teams before Neptune reminded him that they were enemies during this Vytal festival. She'd come here hoping for peace and quiet to practice a new idea for her semblance.

Walking into the room slowly she stared at the boy with silver-gray hair as he practiced his kicks. She had to admit it was shocking to run into one of the antagonists of the original timeline; but she'd known she'd run into them eventually. Just like Roman she could appreciate the lean muscles that ran over his body and the skill he obviously had. She wanted to fight him. His being here meant that Tucson was already dead, which kind of sucked but didn't affect her personally.

His style reminded her of kickboxing; given her quick battle style, she didn't know if she could win against him. Just from watching him she could see he was strong, especially in his legs, that she knew were metal, but also skilled enough that the movements were ingrained in his body. He could most likely run through these motions in his sleep. Someone who spent all their time training was more dangerous than most of the people in Beacon. From what she could remember he was also an assassin's son but didn't have the title himself. Either way, she wanted him on her side.

"He's quite good, isn't he," Cinder asked the girl standing in the doorway. Ruby jumped at her voice but turned to face the woman less than a second later. Meeting those amber eyes, she blinked at the protective glint she could see but it was gone just as quickly. So, Cinder did care about him which meant she must care about Emerald too. It was a good thing to know if she couldn't sway them to her side. It also meant she wasn't heartless, and that Cinder had something to lose.

"Yes," Ruby said with a smirk. Tilting her head, she motioned to his legs, saying, "I assume his boots are his weapons."

"Yes," the older woman said studying the girl Roman almost killed months ago as Ruby did the same. She didn't look like much, but Cinder knew not to underestimate anyone especially not little girls with cute faces. They tended to be the worst people to deal with. Mostly due to their preaching about honor and being heroes without realizing how the world worked.

"He's good," Ruby confirmed again as her eyes ran over the older woman's body. She could admit that Cinder was attractive, but what drew her eyes was the Haven uniform worn by the woman who looked too old to be a student. Knowing her true goal, Ruby also knew that she'd either tricked the headmaster of Haven or he was working with her. The cynic in her thought that it was the second option.

"See something you like," the woman teased. Her lips pulling into a smirk as she looked down at the shorter girl.

The second the words left the woman's lips, Ruby twitched. She most definitely did see something she liked and disliked. It would make this whole goal of conquering the world easier if she wasn't a hormonal teenager. An example of her current issue was standing right in front of her and she couldn't even tell which of the two were more attractive. It was the exact issue she had with Roman; why were villains so good looking? Did being evil come with a predestined level of attractiveness? That couldn't be true because all her teammates and team JNPR were attractive too. If Cardin was here, he'd be laughing at her.

Deciding that she needed to think about something else; mainly because her face was slowly turning the same color as her jacket, she shifted her eyes back to Mercury. He also looked too old to be a freshmen student. Had their team disguised themselves as second or third years? Either way it didn't matter beyond sating her own curiosity. It wasn't as if it mattered what grade they pretended to be in when they were going to destroy Beacon.

Seeing an opening in his stance Ruby rushed forward drawing Thorn as she moved causing Mercury's eyes to widen as she appeared in front of him. Cinder's golden eyes followed the movement as she saw the girl block Mercury's kick easily. Maybe Beacon did have some strong students in their first years after all. She knew that Roman had been having trouble with a few freshman students, but she hadn't expected to see one of the problem children so soon.

She had however studied the files of every student closely and she even remembered this girl from the night of Roman's failed dust robbery. Ruby Rose was a fifteen-year-old first year who'd been recruited by Ozpin himself after stopping Roman's robbery. There were still unanswered questions around why he cared enough to recruit her personally, but Cinder could see the girl was skilled. From the reports she'd gotten, mostly from Roman, the girl had been able to keep up with him at the docks and she'd allowed him to escape. That had been the most interesting part of his report. Why would a huntress in training allow him to escape? She supposed the girl could've been more worried about her teammate than about capturing him, but that didn't explain Roman's near defensive attitude whenever the girl came up in conversation.

"It's better to practice with a partner," Ruby said with an amused smirk. She'd expected Mercury to notice her the second she came into the arena, but he hadn't. She guessed that he'd been too focused on his training to notice her.

He stepped away and looked over at Cinder. Was he supposed to spar against the little red tornado that had just interrupted him? He didn't mind having a sparring partner, but weren't they supposed to keep their abilities hidden? Watching the woman think it over, he kept an eye on the girl from the corner of his eye. Even if they were still supposed to act friendly, she was an enemy. Her amused expression was slightly annoying although he also noticed that she seemed more indulgent than anything else. It was obvious that she thought she was in control. He wanted to wipe the expression from her face. Cinder frowned in thought for a moment before nodding to him; it would be a good chance to learn about the girl's skills in a controlled environment.

"Okay," he said aloud and lashed out with a kick at her head. Almost as if she'd been expecting his action, Ruby ducked under the blow and slashed at his ribs with her dagger. Backstepping he raised an eyebrow as she flipped the knife in her hand and slashed upward at his face at the last second. Grey eyes brightened as he tilted his head to the side to avoid her knife.

Slowly his lips mirrored her smirk; this girl was good. She hadn't hesitated to redirect her attack the second she knew that it was going to miss. Her mind obviously worked faster than most peoples or perhaps she simply had more battle experience. If her semblance was speed-based, then her thoughts might work at a different speed then his. Either way, the smirk on her face was well deserved. Flickering his eyes down to meet her own he decided that he liked this girl.

Ruby jumped back putting some distance between them when she caught the expression on his face. He was most definitely going to be a challenge, she loved that. Activating the fire dust option on Thorn she took off using her semblance to get behind him. The rapier-like thrust she sent at his spine was one she'd copied from Weiss. Mercury ducked feeling the heat from her dagger as it passed over his face, his eyes caught the haze of battle lust on her own. It was obvious that she loved battle more than a normal person; maybe he could use that against her. Kicking the girl back he shot at her with his boot.

A normal person would have dodged the shot before putting distance between them, Ruby, however, cut it in half as she lunged at him. Petals drifted to the ground behind her, as she appeared in front of him with her blade heading for his heart. Catching her wrist before the blade could hit him he held her in place as her own eyes widened in surprise. It was obvious that she hadn't expected him to keep up with her speed.

"Just because your fast, doesn't mean you'll win," he said allowing a bit of mocking to enter his voice.

"Thanks for the tip."

The words were followed by her dropping the dagger. Following the weapon with his eyes he expected it to hit the floor not fall into her waiting hand. With a flick of her finger, the blade's fire turned to ice and she slashed at the hand holding her in place. Instead of releasing her, he moved to the right jerking her along. He continued dodging her attempts to free herself, but she didn't seem too annoyed at the situation.

The smirk on her face had changed to a wild grin reminding him more of a fox than anything else. Twisting her feet around his own, she lashed out with a kick at his stomach that he was able to dodge, however, she wasn't aiming for him. His only warning was when the hand he was holding twisted to grab his own wrist, then she was using his arm as a balance beam. Kicking at his face in a move that reminded him more of Neo than anything else she forced him to release her. Briefly, he wondered if all short women had the habit of kicking at his face.

Reaching up to touch his jaw as she landed a few feet away, he was glad that she hadn't' been wearing heels. Launching a kick at her he shot at her face. Ruby dodged the shot and leaped forward, the ringing of her scroll, however, had her freezing just as the boy went to kick at her chest. Mercury tilted his leg, so it hit the floor and not her causing it to crack under the force of his strike. They were both a little annoyed at being interrupted.

Pulling out her scroll, Ruby glanced down hoping that it wasn't her team looking for her already. Seeing Qrow's name was flashing across the screen she almost bounced in her place as all annoyance faded from her expression. Sending a mild apologetic glance at the two she said, "I have to take this."

Without giving them time to answer she rushed from the room unaware of the amused glance shared between the two. This was the first time she'd heard from her father in over a month, she had a right to be happy. Closing the door behind her; she was excited not stupid; she answered the call. Leaning against the wall beside the training room door she didn't care that a bright smile was on her face.

"What's up," she asked trying to sound normal and not like she was about to die from happiness. She doubted he even noticed how hard his long missions were on her. Deciding to tease him she said, "please don't tell me your drunk and lost again."

"That was one time," he defended sounding as if she'd just told him Zwei had drunk all his whiskey.

"One time too many," she teased causing him to laugh. The sound caused her smile to widen but she resolutely ignored the pain she felt at only hearing it through a scroll and not in person. It wasn't his fault that he was always away on some important mission for Ozpin. Pushing away the thought she asked, "so why'd you call?"

"What I can't check up on my favorite niece," he asked with a taunting tone.

Feeling a rush of bitterness at the words, she twitched as her smile faded. She hated this. She hated him not being here. He was her father and he was always gone. She'd already had one horrible father she didn't need another one. Tightening her grip on the scroll she tried to push down the bitter anger. He was a great father, and this wasn't his fault; so, why was it so hard to push back her feelings. She knew that Ozpin was the one sending him on missions, but he could have refused; couldn't he?

"Ruby are you alright," he asked. There was concern in his tone and she knew that if she said no, he would rush to Beacon. For a moment she wanted to say no.

"Fine, just tired, my teammate snores," she said forcing a happy tone into her voice. She didn't feel bad about throwing Jaune under the bus.

"Yeah, I know how that is, Tai snored all night long then through half his classes. It drove your mom crazy," he told her with nostalgia in his voice. Coughing to both clear his throat and presumably push away his emotions he said, "I'll be arriving in Vale in about three weeks. I was thinking of spending it with my favorite niece."

"Yes!... I mean that would be great," she said quickly causing him to laugh.

"Well I'll see you in three weeks kiddo," he affirmed before muttering a quick goodbye.

Letting her hand fall as he ended the call, she tried to ignore the stinging tears in her eyes. It wasn't his fault that he wasn't here but sometimes it was hard to remember that fact. Sliding the device into her pocket she reached up to rub at her eyes as a bitter laugh left her throat. She hoped he wouldn't cancel due to a last-minute mission again. Taking a deep breath, she pushed back the negative emotions that she felt in favor of straightening.

Wiping her face one last time she reentered the training room with a fake smile that fooled neither of the two criminals. There was no pity in their eyes however as Cinder handed her Thorn. Taking the dagger, she let out a small breath before sheathing it on her thigh.

The golden-eyed woman smirked as she filed away the girl's actions for another day. Tilting her head, she asked, "team trouble?"

"No," Ruby said walking back into the arena. Facing Mercury, she clenched her hand if only for a second before asking, "want to keep going?"

His answering smirk was the only warning she had before he was lunging toward her.


	19. A Much Needed Talk

Listening to Dr. Oobleck while he ran around the classroom was fun mostly because her brain was able to keep up with his lecture. Ruby watched him in amusement as she sketched on her paper while her classmates went into shock from the overwhelming inflow of information. There were only a few weeks left until the tournament, and that meant the dance was coming up; she still didn't have a date to that. Feeling a mild pain run through her wrist she placed down her pencil as Oobleck started saying something about faunus rights. It was likely that Cardin had started another debate about the topic; from the way Blake bristled beside her, she knew she was right. Rubbing her still sore wrist she pouted; it wasn't very fun to lose to Mercury the night before. Although she did learn a lot about his fighting style, he was a close-up fighter and he had the speed to close vast distances. If she'd used Crescent Rose, he would have learned more about her, however with her just using her back up weapon she would still be able to fight him. She wouldn't win though she would be able to put up a decent fight.

As the bell to end class rang, she stood slowly and stretched her arms above her head. Most of the class ran from the room faster than she could, but she didn't really race. Cardin smirked and walked to the younger girl's side his own team had already evacuated the classroom. Watching her closely he asked, "Ready for our date?"

"Oh, so it is a date," she said picking up her sketchbook she slid it into her bag. They both knew that he wasn't serious about it being a date; they'd already tried that route and failed. Looking up at him she asked, "want to walk with us to combat class?"

"Sure," he agreed stepping into place on her right side. He'd always taken that spot by her side since the moment they became friends. Watching her teammates file into place around them he turned to her blonde puppy asking, "so Jaune did you get any better?"

"Yes, do you want to spar," the blonde asked from Ruby's left side. Cardin was mildly surprised with the answer but mostly amused. Opening his mouth, he was about to answer when Blake pushed past him to walk beside Ruby. For just an instant he felt annoyance with the black-haired girl but pushed it down. Pyrrha simply smiled at Jaune's confidence.

"I would actually," he said answering Jaune's question before turning to Blake. He was really starting to dislike the cat; in comparison to her puppy, her cat was a pain. Tilting his head in her direction he asked, "getting a little jealous kitty?"

"No teasing Blake," Ruby said cutting off his teasing before he could get started. He shrugged even as the cat bristled in anger at his tone or his words. Ignoring the glare, she sent in his direction, he paid attention to Ruby.

Walking into combat class Ruby was quick to go set up the match passing Yang as she did. Seeing her sister flirting with Weiss caused Ruby to bite her lip to hide her amusement. It was nice that her sister was having fun with her partner; they would most likely go to the dance together as well. While she might be happy for her sister, she felt a bit jealous. Not that her last relationship had ended so well since he let her starve to death.

Sun watched the tiny reaper curiously from his perch on one of the metal beams above the arena. For just a moment her face had turned sour, but he didn't notice any other signs that she was hiding her emotions. His tail swung back and forth as he watched Jaune stand across from Cardin. Apparently, his fellow blonde was very determined to win against the taller boy.

Holding his shield up cautiously Jaune approached; he wanted to beat Cardin, but he wasn't going to be reckless about it. His blue eyes were narrowed, and Cardin moved first by smashing his mace into the shield just like most of their spars. Jaune held back the blow and flipped his sword so that he was holding it in a reverse grip. Punching forward he slammed the hilt into Cardin's stomach and as the bigger boy stumbled back Jaune hit him in the nose with his shield.

Blocking Jaune's downward slash with his mace Cardin kicked the boy back. Rolling Jaune refolded his shield and replaced it at his side. Holding his sword with both hands Jaune lunged while the action was reckless it did cause Cardin a bit of surprise. Ruby smirked as Jaune pushed Cardin back; he was doing much better than he had at the beginning of the year although he still wasn't on their level. Turning to Pyrrha, she said, "he'd improved. You did well."

"Thanks, most of it's your influence though," Pyrrha said smiling as she watched her student. The proud glow in her eyes didn't change even as her partner grew confused.

"My influence," Ruby questioned before turning her attention to the blonde. Looking at Jaune's style she couldn't see any of herself in it, even Blake had influenced him more than she had given the way he held his sword earlier.

"He wants to protect you, Ruby," Pyrrha explained catching her leader off guard. Why would he want to protect her? He was the weakest member of their team, she didn't need him to keep her safe.

They watched as Jaune ducked under Cardin's swing and grabbed his arm in an almost iron grip. With a very out of character smirk, he activated his semblance and began to drain Cardin of his aura. Seeing Jaune's aura meter go out of the yellow into green while Cardin's fell Ruby raised an eyebrow. Her blonde had finally found his semblance.

"He can drain aura," Ruby guessed then smirked as she considered the applications of his semblance. Turning to Pyrrha who seemed amused she guessed, "or he can amplify it."

"We just decided to call it Circulation last night," Pyrrha explained. She was oddly smug, much to Ruby's amusement.

"So that's why you kept me away from all your training sessions," the reaper complained without much heat as the match was called in Jaune's favor. She was amazed at how far he'd come from the boy who didn't even know what aura was. All it had taken to get him to this level was proper training and maybe a bit of sadism. Not that she could claim any different; her father was a sadist when they trained as well.

"If you hurt Ruby, I'll kill you," Jaune threatened as he helped Cardin up. Indigo eyes narrowed, why did everyone keep assuming that he wanted a relationship with Ruby.

"I'm not looking to start a relationship with your leader," he told the blonde. The doubtful expression on the blonde's face told him that the boy didn't believe him at all. Rolling his eyes, he said, "that being said I have no desire to hurt the only person willing to play my games."

"You care for her," Jaune stated as the two boys walked into the locker room. He watched Cardin closely as he spoke, "you may even love her, so why wouldn't you try dating her?"

"Simply because we've already tried that and failed," Cardin replied. Neither of them really blamed the other for the way their attempt at dating failed. Ruby was just too caught up in ensuring that everything ended well, and he didn't hold a chance against her goals. As they got changed and he couldn't help but wonder if he was doing the right thing. Ruby was very attached to the people she cared about, what would she do once she realized that he was about to leave her.

"I won't ask," Jaune said patting him on the shoulder as he left. Cardin sighed and sat down on the bench behind him; what would happen when Ruby finally lost sight of her goals? What would she do when she had nothing left to live for? The nightmares she had were something even he feared, and he didn't even know what they were truly about. Burying his face in his hands he couldn't help but think the worst would happen. Shaking his head, he stood and plastered a smirk on his face; it wasn't his place to question her.

He found her waiting in the school courtyard tapping her foot impatiently. She wanted to get to Vale before the shops closed, although they still had hours until then. She didn't quite know what Cardin wanted to talk about, but he'd been acting strange since the forest. In truth she hated not knowing what was going on with him; he'd never kept things from her before. Even when she wished he would.

"Well don't you look happy," Cardin said coming up behind her. Spinning around to look at him she didn't like the fake smile he wore. He must have had something heavy on his mind if he was acting like this.

"What's wrong," she asked. Resisting the urge to touch his face, she frowned up at him with concern.

"Nothing just annoyed I lost to your knight," he said beginning the walk to the bullhead. Despite the blatant lie, she followed along smirking.

"Oh, is Jaune too much for you now," she asked and he snorted. If he'd had more time to get used to the puppy's semblance then he would have won that fight. He almost wanted to call for a rematch.

"I was just surprised," he denied. Who would actually be afraid of the little blonde puppy? The boy was weaker than any other student at Beacon, he doubted the boy would win a second time. It had been shocking to find his aura being drained away but no trick worked perfectly twice. He looked down at her and asked, "where do you want to go?"

"The weapon shop is our first stop," she said giggling at her own rhyme. Cardin smiled at the sound. He hadn't heard her laugh like that since the moment they left for Beacon. Once she got herself under control she said, "and you can pick the next place."

"Deal," he agreed already dreading seeing Nic. The old man hated him.

"Maybe once we get there you can tell me what you need to," Ruby said not believing for one second that he would keep a secret from her. It would have been almost insulting if it wasn't so true.

"I could just want the pleasure of your company," he said smirking. Even being around her like this made him feel a million times better despite how much he dreaded what he had to tell her. He honestly didn't know what he'd do without her or who he'd be.

"Yeah right," she stated falling into giggles again. His smirk dissolved into a smile as they strode onto the bullhead.

The trip to Vale was quiet. He could tell that she was worried about him, he didn't know if she was going to approve of what he'd chosen to do, but he knew that this was what was best for him and his team. He'd follow her into hell if she asked him too, but that wasn't what his team needed from him. Ruby had a goal that he could never match and following her around like a puppy wasn't going to keep anyone safe much less those that trailed after him.

Of course, Ruby had noticed his darkening mood, but she'd said nothing. It wouldn't help either of them if she tried to push for answers. He'd just get angry that she was pushing him. Even with all his loyalty to her, he still had a horrible temper. She didn't like thinking about the days before they became friends but that didn't mean she had no memory of them. Walking to Nic's shop, she pushed all thoughts of Cardin from her mind.

Entering the shop Ruby got ready to catch whatever was thrown at her, only for Cardin to reach out and catch the wrench before she could. Nic looked at the boy who seemed to tower over her and grinned. The expression was full of mocking as he asked, "bringing your boyfriend weapon shopping, now Ruby?"

Blushing she glared at the old man. He was a horrible tease. Crossing her arms she said, "shut up, has that dagger came in yet?"

Nic smirked and waved her over neither of them noticed the curious green eyes that followed them while from where she stood beside her current guardian. Cardin went to follow only to freeze when he was glared at by Nic. Sinking slightly under the old man's glare he huffed when the man said, "you stay. Just because I invited her into my store doesn't mean you can come in."

"Be nice," Ruby said. The warning echoed in the air as she looked between the two men. Nic frowned at the order, he already didn't like Cardin at all, but for Ruby he would allow the boy to simmer beside the door like an unwanted rat.

"I'll act however I want, freeloader," he stated. Seeing her frown slightly he reached down before pulling a box from its place behind the counter.

"I have not once forgotten to pay you," she protested more out of habit than anything else. Taking the box, she opened it to check that it was the right order and to see what the dagger looked like. Unlike the ones, she'd given Pyrrha and Blake this one was more of an assessor than a weapon. Smiling she closed the box only to find Nic's holding out his hand for payment. It wouldn't have bothered her as much if his hand wasn't in biting distance. Her eye twitched in annoyance as she felt the urge to snap at the offending limb. Instead of biting him, she said, "I'm not done yet."

Nic pouted and fell back into his wheeled desk chair with all the grace of a three-legged lion. Looking up at her with an expression filled with exasperation he asked, "what do you want now?"

"A dress infused with dust," she said causing him to nearly choke. She was thinking either lightning dust to accelerate her movement speed or ice dust to counter Cinder's fire.

"This is a weapon store not one for clothing," he protested waving his hand around as if to point out all the weapons surrounding them. Following the movement with her eyes she caught sight of a lovely short sword with runic lines of blue dust flowing down the blade. Maybe she should buy a sword, having another backup weapon would help and it wasn't as if she didn't have the money. A person could never have too many weapons after all. Blinking as he snapped his fingers in front of her face she pouted as he asked, "besides what do you need a dust infused dress for?"

"Well there's a dance, and I can't exactly wear my combat clothes," she teased and was pleased to see him grumble.

She might not be able to wear her combat gear, but she could turn her dress into combat gear. It was always good to be prepared and it wasn't as if anyone would fault her for the action. Cardin watched them bicker for a moment before walking confidently over to the counter; but not before scanning the counter for anything the old man could throw at him. Ruby saw his movement and resisted the urge to groan. She really didn't need them to start an argument right now.

"I thought I told you to stay," Nic ground out annoyed at being disobeyed by a child. He'd never gotten over being called a freak by the boy during Cardin's more racist phase. Turning his attention back to Ruby he said, "control your pet, freeloader."

"Stop calling me that," she whined sounding more like a child than normal. Raising an eyebrow at her, he was slightly disappointed as she said, "and I don't control Cardin."

"You should," the old man complained as Cardin returned his wrench. It took most of his self-control not to hit the boy on the head with the tool. While Cardin might've gotten better over the years, he'd only hidden his racist views not disregarded them entirely. Sending the annoying boy a cold glance he said, "I could have kicked him out of my shop for that stunt."

"But you won't because he's with me," she said lightly. If she got special treatment, then she would use it to her advantage if for no reason than because it existed. Besides if he ever got tired of her actions then he would tell her.

"Why is Ruby a freeloader," Cardin asked despite already knowing the story. He loved bringing it up whenever he and Nic were in the same room. They both knew it annoyed her but there was nothing she could do to stop them.

"Let me tell you a story of the one- and only-time little Ruby ran away from home," Nic started as she pouted.

"I was lost," she protested while feeling her face heat up.

"You stayed at my shop for three days taking apart weapons," he pointed out as if to combat her claim. What he didn't tell her was that all of those weapons worked better once she'd put them back together. Grinning at her he said, "I even gave you food."

"That's called being a good person," a voice interrupted causing her to jump. Nic grinned at her startled expression; it was always amusing when her guard fell. Seeing Cardin stiffen beside her, he tried to ignore how the boy shifted his weight to stand between Ruby and the stranger. The boy's loyalty was the only reason he tolerated his existence.

"James it's not nice to scare kids," Nic said to the man as Ruby slowly relaxed. General James Ironwood smiled.

Ruby shifted trying to calm herself down. It wasn't every day that someone managed to sneak up on her, yet he had. Worse was the fact that he wasn't even a stealthy man but someone who was half made of iron. How had she not noticed him? Shifting on her feet she moved to offer a small smile to the general of Atlas. Flickering her eyes to the ginger girl standing behind the man, she felt a bit relieved. If Penny was here then she hadn't changed history too much.

"It's good to see you haven't lost your touch, Nic," he told the older man.

"Well we haven't seen each other for years," Nic told the man as Ruby moved around him to greet the other girl.

"Hi, my name is Ruby Rose," she said holding out her hand to the girl as the two men talked. The friendly open smile on her face was the only thing Cardin noticed as Penny shook her hand. It was easy to see that his reaper was planning something.

"Salutations I'm Penny," the girl said giving her a salute. Ruby smiled while Cardin smirked. Seeing his look Ruby decided to cut him off before he could mock her for trying to add someone else to her collection.

"And this is Cardin," Ruby introduced before the boy could say anything but the look, he sent in her direction meant they would be talking about it later.

"I was going to be nice," he protested just so that he would have something to say. If Ruby was trying to collect this girl, then she must be someone important. He just hoped that meeting this girl wouldn't cause her to agonize over her choices the same way she had when dealing with Weiss. Nic saw the two about to argue and cut in.

"Freeloader, this is James Ironwood, headmaster of Atlas and a general," he said catching her attention. Ruby looked up at the man for a second examining him for any visible weapons but didn't find any, yet that didn't mean anything. He could be using his coat to conceal any weapons from what she remembered he used a pistol as his main weapon. Either way, he was dangerous.

"Huntress prospect Ruby Rose it's a pleasure to meet you," she said formally catching Cardin off guard. He'd never heard her use old-style formality before now. He was pretty sure he'd slept through those lessons during their time at Signal.

"There's no need for formality," James stated although he seemed to appreciate it. Shaking her offered hand he said, "I'm just here to visit an old friend."

"How do you know Nic? I didn't know the old man even had any friends," Cardin said with mocking in his tone before he ducked to dodge the wrench thrown at his head. Turning to the old man he shouted, "watch it, geezer!"

"Go die in a hole brat," Nic growled sounding more like a lion than a man. Glancing around for something else to throw he frowned when he found nothing. One day Cardin's big mouth was going to get him into a situation Ruby wouldn't be able to save him from. Cardin opened his mouth to insult the man; because it was fun, but snapped it shut when Ruby grabbed his arm. Tensing he glanced down at the girl holding his wrist for a moment, then sighed in defeat.

Nic smirked counting it as a win in his favor before saying, "I used to teach at Atlas until Mira died."

Ruby nodded in understanding. Staying in Atlas must've been painful after losing someone he loved. She'd had a hard enough time settling back in at home when her father left on his missions. Although she knew that he would come back to her it hurt that he had to leave in the first place. Feeling Cardin shift beside her, she forced a small smile to her face.

"I wish I could have met your wife Nic," she said softly. It would've been nice to know Mira from more than just stories. Yet she also doubted that he would have come to Vale if the woman was still alive.

He smiled at the young girl although it looked more grim than anything else. Every day he saw more of his wife in the small girl and he hated to think that she would meet the same fate. If not for her silver eyes, she would look almost exactly like his Mira. Forcing the thought from his mind he admitted, "you remind me of her, although she didn't have a tendency to forget paying."

Bristling she was bout to protest when Cardin clicked his tongue. The sound drew her attention and let her see the almost murderous glare he was sending the Atlas general. Glancing between them she frowned at the expression on his face. What issue could Cardin possibly have with a man neither of them had ever met? She didn't know why Cardin was so angry, but she knew his temper was horrible.

"Ruby we have to go if you want to eat before returning to Beacon," Cardin reminded her once he noticed the concern on her face.

"Bye Nic, I'll be back for the dress," she said. It was best to leave before Cardin lost his temper.

She didn't doubt that he would lash out at the general if the man continued to stay close to them. It was terrifying how hot his temper could burn, but she knew it would never be directed at her. Straightening she tightened her grip on his hand before releasing him and walking from the shop. For once, Nic didn't throw something at her head. Cardin followed her slowly, although he did send one last glare at the general.

Catching up to Ruby he slung his arm over her shoulder although it was more for his own comfort than hers. Feeling her relax against him he asked, "where do you want to go?"

"The same place as last time," she suggested ignoring the fact she could feel his body trembling. She didn't know if it was out of anger or some other reason.

"Ruby," he started before closing his mouth. There was so much he had to tell her and seeing General Ironwood had shaken him if only a little. Forcing a smirk into place he finally relaxed.

Almost an hour later, Cardin watched her eat silently his own food still steaming in front of him as if to condemn him. He had no idea how to start this conversation with her, even if he'd thought of a thousand different plans. He didn't want her to be angry with him for keeping this from her much less hurt that he'd made such an important decision without her.

"Just start from the beginning," Ruby suggested after swallowing her food. It wasn't as if he could say anything that would completely change their relationship in less than an instant. Besides she put up with Blake's nearly hidden suspicion and avoidance for weeks, there was no way he could tell her anything more annoying than that. Seeing his hesitation, she said, "nothing you say can make me hate you."

Unless he suddenly slept with her sister. Then she would be just freaked out enough to believe he was an alien rather than her best friend. Given the looks she'd seen him throwing at Russel over the last week however she was vaguely sure that he would be putting aside his pride any day now. With the two of them going to the dance together she was going to be all alone. Not that there was anything wrong with her going alone; she wasn't jealous.

"Don't make promises you can't keep," he said before sighing in defeat. The best course of action was to be blunt. Taking a deep breath, he said, "My team and I are transferring to Atlas after the Vytal Festival."

For a second, she stared at him as if she hoped that the words had been some strange illusion. They had to be fake, he wouldn't just leave her, would he? He'd always been with her since the moment she started attending Signal. There was no way he would just go running off to Atlas without consulting her about it. It had to be some kind of mistake. She must've heard him say something different.

When he turned away from her to look out the window, she knew that it wasn't a mistake. He was really going to leave her for Atlas. Sitting down her glass on the table she noticed her hand shaking. What the hell was she supposed to do all alone? Every plan she'd ever made counted on him being by her side. Clasping her shaking hands under the table she breathed in a shaking breath that somehow made everything worse.

Why would he go to Atlas? He didn't know about the upcoming Fall of Beacon so she couldn't blame it for his departure. There had to be some other reason. A tiny part of her jumped at the chance that it might be her fault he was leaving. Had she done something to drive him away?

"I-"

"Stop looking like I just kicked your puppy halfway across the god damn room! It's not your fault," he snapped causing her to flinch. Glaring at her, he knew that he'd just cut off what was supposed to be an apology.

Blinking at him, she drove back the instincts that told her to lash out at him for hurting her. It was Cardin, he'd never hurt her on purpose. He wasn't saying this to make her feel as if she was a fool for trusting him; he was her friend. They'd known each other since Signal, he had a good reason for leaving her. Here she was worrying about what she'd done wrong when he was trying to make her feel better.

"Shit, stop crying," he hissed as everyone in the restaurant turned to look at them. He'd known this was a horrible idea. It didn't help that this was a huntsman only restaurant and anyone here could kill him in under six seconds.

Reaching up to check that she was actually crying since she hadn't noticed, the reaper let out a shaky laugh. She was pathetic, wasn't she? All it took was him saying that he was going to leave, and she broke like some weak doll. Feeling a rush of bitterness, she wiped at her eyes. Closing her eyes for a moment she despised the fact that the tears wouldn't stop. There was no reason to cry! She wasn't Alice anymore; she didn't need to cry over every little thing. Hearing a subtle cough from beside her caused her eyes to open.

Their waiter stood a foot away holding out a tissue and aiming a stern glare at Cardin. Taking it with a bitter laugh she wiped at her eyes as he laid a box of them on the table. Watching with blurry eyes as Cardin tried to sink into his seat, she pushed her hurt and anger to the very back of her mind. That did not stop her from balling the tissue up in her hand as the waiter took away her empty plate.

"So, Atlas," she said hating the way her voice cracked. From his flinch, he felt the same.

"Yeah…"

"Well are you going to tell me why your leaving or do I need to drag it out of you with my scythe," she snapped; pushing back her emotions wasn't working so well. It was his turn to flinch as he looked anywhere but her angry face.

"I love you," he offered hoping to appease her and save himself from being used as target practice. From the unamused glare she gave him, she did not approve of his attempt. Poking his food with a fork, he said, "I really do love you Ruby and that's the problem."

"So, it is my fault," she mumbled causing him to stab his fork down onto the table. It went right through the wood and stood there shaking from the force he'd used. Meeting his eyes slowly, she twitched at the glare on his face.

"No, it's mine. You are amazing and you changed my life; literally. Without you, I would be some no-name racist bully with a bunny fetish. I would do anything for you," he stated while trying to ignore what he'd just admitted. Hearing one of the men a few tables over try to cover their laugh he felt his ears burn. Coughing he decided to push on saying, "as the leader of team CRDL I chose to transfer my team to Atlas. I made this decision because my team needs a leader, not your best friend. I can't be the leader they need if my first thought is how you'll react to my choices."

"Car-"

"No! My first thought in Forever Fall when we were attacked wasn't to protect Russel, it was _ where's Ruby!_... You are the best thing in my life, but your also my greatest weakness."

Letting the words hang in the air he felt horrible at both the admission and about yelling at her. What if she didn't understand what he was talking about and hated him anyway? He wouldn't be able to live with himself if she decided that she wanted nothing to do with him. Staring at the table as if it could tell him the answers to life's problems, he was startled to hear her laugh.

Slapping a hand over her mouth she couldn't stop her shoulders from shaking. The muffled laughter would have been insulting if he hadn't just seen her cry a few moments ago. Shifting nervously as she got herself under control, he relaxed. Laughter was a lot better than her using him to sharpen her scythe. Lowering her hand, she allowed him to see the gentle smile that let him know everything was going to be okay.

"I was worried that you hated me or that I'd done something wrong," she said softly. The smile never left her lips as she played with the rolled-up tissue in her hand, but it did take on a sadder glow that worried him slightly. Seeing the worried expression, she said, "it's nice to know that you're just finally growing up. A leader's first thought should be about their team, and this way Russel will stop trying to murder me."

Before he could start arguing that Russel was not trying to kill her; anymore that is, the same waiter as before placed a slice of strawberry shortcake in front of her. In truth that was the only thing needed to take her attention away from Cardin and his confession entirely. The hurried thanks she gave to the indulgently smiling man was all it took for Cardin to turn his attention to the waiter. He was vaguely sure that while the table might not have all the answers to life, the cake might and he needed that recipe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yay emotion. I honestly didn't plan for this chapter to be so emotional but that was how it turned out. Anyway, what are your thoughts on Ruby's and Cardin's talk?
> 
> The next chapter is the mech fight with poor Roman.


	20. Arkos

It was a nice day in Vale. The birds were out doing bird things, while the people were happily walking around ignorant of the fact they would be in danger in a few months. Even Raven might have given her tribe a day off while she stalked the daughter of her dead best friend, but no one could prove it; here weren't any identity tests for birds after all. The temperature was nice too with just a hint of an autumn breeze. It was the perfect day to go out and eat ice cream alone or with a friend as evidenced by the suspicious black-haired girl watching the streets with an amused expression.

Any other day Ruby would be happy to relax away from Beacon, but today was the day of the White Fang rally. Something that Blake had told them about last night at the last minute. So, in order to keep their feline teammate from getting herself killed, they'd all signed up to hover around Vale just in case. Knowing that Roman had a giant mech hidden in the warehouse, Ruby was really just killing time until the moment Blake called for backup.

Once she'd abandoned Pyrrha and Jaune in a café together, by running off to the bathroom and never returning, she'd decided to wander over to the CCT tower to see Penny. Maybe by pushing them to have a date the two would actually stop dancing around each other and actually get together. She wanted her ship to sail. Plus, she really was getting annoyed with the half-hearted glances they'd been giving each other.

Seeing someone familiar up ahead she smirked; at least she'd completed one of her objectives. Catching note of the discomfort on the android's face, she threw a contemplative look at the two soldiers guarding Penny. She hadn't gotten a chance to talk to Penny since meeting her a few days ago. Deciding that messing with Atlas soldiers and saving Penny was one and the same she took off in the girl's direction.

"Penny," she shouted catching the girl off guard. Stumbling Penny caught the reaper easily when she leaped forward. The two soldiers guarding Penny blinked and shared a confused glance. What were they supposed to do in this situation?

"Ruby!"

Penny excited cry echoing in the air as she gave the girl a bone-crushing hug. Spinning the redhead around the android felt nothing but happiness at having her friend around. Groaning Ruby tapped the girl on the shoulder as a sign to put her down. Blushing in slight embarrassment Penny put Ruby down gently before asked, "how did you find me?"

"I've literally just been wandering around, what are you doing anyway," Ruby asked barely sparing a glance at the curious soldiers.

"Watching General Ironwood's presentation," she said. Glancing at the holographic presentation she tried to hide the slowly forming frown on her face at the sight. It was hard to remind herself that she was different from the machines being displayed. Narrowing her eyes Ruby noticed the expression her friend was trying to hide while the two soldiers shifted nervously.

"Oh, want to go for ice cream," Ruby asked using the first excuse she thought of. Watching Penny hesitantly looked at the two soldiers behind her Ruby twitched and sent them a mild glare that silently ordered them to agree. When they stood there with uncertain expressions, Ruby took matters into her own hands. Reaching out she grabbed Penny's hand saying, "you two just wait here I'll bring her back safe."

Before they could reject the idea and she knew they were going to. Ruby activated her semblance sending both girls rushing away in a tornado of red and green petals. Stumbling out of the vortex of rose petals Ruby looked over at the ginger girl who stared at the ground with a dazed expression. At least she didn't vomit like most people did when they encountered her semblance. They were several feet away from the soldiers who were still looking around in confusion; Ironwood needed better men.

Keeping a gentle grip on Penny's hand Ruby led the other girl away from the presentation. She didn't know why the girl seemed so down, but she wanted to make her feel better, not worse. What if the android didn't like ice cream? Having a mild internal panic, Ruby twitched causing Penny to glance at her. It was easy for her to notice the signs of barely concealed panic written across the other girl's face.

"Friend Ruby?"

Hearing Penny say her name in a concerned tone, Ruby pushed down her panic. It could go into the box in the back of her mind with all the other problem emotions; yes, she knew that wasn't healthy. Looking at the innocent green-eyed girl beside her, Ruby decided that clearing the air might be the best course of action. Rounding the corner toward one of her favorite ice cream shops Ruby smirked.

"You're not human," she said softly causing Penny to look up in a panic. The expression on the girl's face screamed that she was ready to run away and never look back. Ruby was more amused at the reaction than anything else.

"How do you know that," she asked in a rush. What would Ironwood and her father do when they discovered that Ruby knew about her being an android? Worse what if Ruby hated her? Catching sight of the amused expression on Ruby's face she stilled.

"Your heavier than a normal human and your skin feels like that used to disguise a prosthetic," Ruby explained. She'd had a teacher back at Signal who used an expensive prosthetic leg. Penny simply stared at the other girl too stunned to move until Ruby reached up to poke her on the cheek. Flushing at the action Penny shifted away from her.

"My father built me to look human, and I'm the first robot to have aura or emotions," Penny defended while crossing her arms. It was a human defensive measure that she thought might help. In truth, she did have a few doubts about if she was a real person or not. She didn't want to be like those emotionless things up on display.

Well, he'd definitely got the human part right. Penny was adorable if Ruby hadn't already known the girl was an android she might never have guessed. The cute flush on her face was completely natural and her defensive actions were human enough they would fool anyone else. Grinning Ruby couldn't resist poking the girl in the ribs just to hear her squeak. Now she knew why it was so much fun for Cardin to tease her.

"Having aura means you have a soul so your human to me," Ruby said simply once Penny had put two feet of space between them. The cute pout on her face was something that Ruby took great joy in causing.

"What," Penny asked thoroughly confused by the girl who seemed amused by her confusion. She'd expected to be hated or feared but not this; the easy acceptance went against human nature.

"Having aura makes you human, it makes you different than those robots we saw," Ruby explained her expression turning serious. Meeting Penny's eyes she said, "if anyone ever tries to tell you otherwise let me know and I'll take care of it."

By using them as a chew toy. Watching the expression of relief and shock flow across the other girl's face she smirked. Penny was hers, if anyone insulted her then they would have to deal with both her and Pyrrha. She was sure the older girl would attack someone if she asked her too. Feeling the android come crashing into her arms she returned the fierce hug with one of her own. It was obvious that the girl would be crying if she could.

Hearing the thundering of footsteps behind them Ruby pulled away from the other girl with just a little annoyance on her face. Looking at the two soldiers they'd left behind she wondered if Ironwood would be annoyed if she beat up his soldiers. Both were out of breath but holding their guns steady as they aimed at her as if she was a threat. Hearing Penny move to defend her she allowed a wicked grin to form on her face.

"Finally caught up did you," she teased causing them to flush beneath their helmets. Seeing a certain General behind them she wasn't at all worried. Ironwood might be a bit paranoid but even he wouldn't shoot her for taking Penny away to talk. The second one of them went to speak only for Ironwood to cut him off.

"That's enough," he said looking down at Ruby. She knew that he was sizing her up and she tried to channel as much of her father as she could. From the amused expression, it might not be working. Glancing at Penny he tensed before saying, "I would hope you don't kidnap people very often Miss Rose."

"Penny's a special case," she said brazenly. Ironwood smiled seeing at once the reason why a headstrong boy like Cardin would be fond of her. She also reminded him of Qrow for some reason; he shuddered at the thought of Qrow having a child.

"Well Miss Polendina and I will be heading back to Beacon if you wish to join us," he said motioning for Penny to follow him. The girl went to his side slowly still afraid of being reprimanded for leaving her guards. When he laid a gentle hand on her shoulder she relaxed slightly.

Watching the exchange closely, Ruby hummed softly. It seemed the General did have a soft spot for Penny. Finally dropping her guard once she knew the android wasn't in trouble, Ruby allowed a small smile to appear on her face. Maybe Ironwood was a good man. She hoped that she could grow to trust him, but at the same time it was enough for her that Penny did trust him.

Ruby shook her head in response to the offer. While she would love to take the time to pick apart Ironwood's metal brain, she had a job to do here in Vale. Maybe next time they met she could have a little fun. With a carefree expression, she said, "I'm going to check on my teammates. See you at the dance Penny!"

Rushing away from the two Atlas natives, she pretended not to see the disappointed expression on Penny's face. She would spend plenty of time with Penny at the dance, it wasn't as if she had a date to occupy her time. Heading toward the café where she left her teammates, she felt the bitter feeling return for a moment but ignored it. Confronting Cinder at the CCT was far more important than a dance; also, she doubted that anyone would want to take her to the dance in the first place.

Finding her teammates was easy not that she'd thought it would be hard. They were standing right outside the cafe she'd left them in although the kiss they were engaged in was new. Smirking Ruby leaned against a light pole and waited as she mentally did a victory dance. It was about time that they realized they both liked each other. Now instead of watching Pyrrha pace and mutter about how oblivious Jaune was she got to listen to them say gushy couple talk. It was important to focus on the small victories, not the new hardships she would have to face.

Jaune was the first to see her and the one to have the most interesting reaction. Stumbling back and breaking their lip lock he fell over his own feet like a newborn deer; Ruby wasn't ashamed to say she broke into laughter the second he hit the pavement. Pyrrha's whole face turned as red as her hair while her hands came up to hide her face. Listening to her partner laugh, she barely noticed when Jaune pulled himself up.

"So, I guess you're having fun," Ruby teased. It was nice when a plan finally came together. She just hoped that nothing happened to make them crash and burn. When neither said anything, she hugged Pyrrha trying to assure the girl that she didn't mind their new relationship. Feeling the older girl hug, her back, she closed her eyes taking a moment to cling to her partner. She needed someone to cling to when Cardin left her behind. Pulling away before she started crying, she said, "I'm so happy for you both, but I'm so telling Blake."

At the mention of their faunus teammate, Jaune winced. He really didn't want to deal with two sets of amused expressions aimed at him. It was already bad enough that Cardin was going to tease him relentlessly, he didn't need a preview of what his sisters were going to do when they found out.

"Ruby," Jaune whined at the same time all their scrolls began to ring. For once he was grateful for an emergency happening.

He knew that there would be no stopping the teasing however when Ruby sent him a taunting smirk before pulling out her scroll. Seeing Blake's name, she frowned a bit but didn't allow worry to show on her face. As the team leader she couldn't allow them to see just how concerned she was. Answering the call she put it on speaker before deciding to tease her teammate.

"Ruby Rose greatest leader in Beacon speaking." Ruby said causing Jaune to grumble from beside her.

"Help!" Sun screamed without acknowledging her words; his voice sounded panicked. Humming slightly Ruby laid a hand on her folded scythe as she heard the sound of rampaging footsteps. Glancing upward, she pouted a bit at the fact neither had reacted to her teasing.

"Torchwick's in a giant robot," Blake said at the same time both ran past being chased by an Atlassian paladin. Staring after it for a moment she wondered if they knew how dangerous that was before shrugging. Ending the call and sliding her scroll into her pocket she felt the excitement of battle rush through her veins.

"Pyrrha can you-" Ruby started to ask only to be cut off when Pyrrha raised her hand and used her semblance to yank the paladin back slightly. Throwing a bright grin at her partner Ruby rushed forward drawing Crescent Rose as she did. Looking back over her shoulder she ordered, "Jaune get civilians away from here!"

As the weakest member of the team, she needed him to be out of the way. Her scythe glinted in the light as she closed the distance between her and the paladin. Swinging the weapon in a motion backed by her momentum realized it was a mistake almost instant. Her scythe bounced off the legs of the paladin and she stumbled back with her arms aching. Cursing herself for such an amateur mistake she made a mental note to aim for the joints next time.

Roman raised the leg of the robot to crush the girl only for her to be snatched out of the way by a blur of yellow. Sun held the reaper tightly as he moved away from the mech. Slightly surprised, she did nothing but grip her scythe as the boy carried her away from the fight, she hadn't expected him to save her. The moment he skidded to a stop beside Blake, she wiped the shock from her face.

"How do you want to do this," Blake asked as Ruby was placed on the ground gently. The monkey faunus took a moment to unhook his weapon from his belt as silver eyes looked up at the paladin for a second. Studying the mech, she briefly glanced up at glass separating them from Roman before she smirked.

"We need to take out the legs," she said. If she aimed for the joints while having enough momentum, then she could probably cut one off. Resting her scythe on her shoulders she waited for Pyrrha to join them before saying, "or find some way to get Roman out of the paladin. Blake, Sun you guys are the vanguard, get his attention and keep it. Pyrrha you run interference that things made of metal use your semblance to slow it down. I'm going to get a vantage point."

Jaune looked over at his team as they split to do their tasks and felt annoyed that all he could do was crowd control. He wanted to help them fight too, he wanted to be useful, yet here he was useless. Wasn't the hero supposed to be rushing off to protect people? He didn't feel like a hero, he barely felt like a knight. Why was it that he was improving so slowly?

Unaware of her teammate's thoughts Ruby used the recoil from her scythe to reach the top of a building nearby before digging the blade into the roof. It was likely that Beacon would pay for any damages. Switching her normal bullets to ice dust rounds she aimed through her scope. Slowing him down was necessary right now. Keeping completely still she waited until she had a clear shot.

Blake wrapped her ribbon around one of the arms and used it to swing herself up. Unsheathing both her blades she swung them at the paladin's arms, only to get punched away. Landing roughly the faunus rolled to a stop as ice exploded off one of the paladin's legs. Chancing a glance at her leader, Blake noticed the firm frown on Ruby's face.

Sun slammed his staff into the frozen metal at the same time Pyrrha used her semblance to yank the metal away. The expression of rage on his face was so out of character that Blake had to take a double-take. The mech stumbled back but didn't fall as Roman let out a cry of shock. Seeing that the wires in the leg were exposed and Blake took the opportunity to shoot at the wiring.

Growling in anger Roman aimed at the faunus and pressed the button to release the missiles. Ruby reacted abandoning Crescent Rose on the roof she used her semblance to snatch the girl out of the way seconds before the street under her exploded. Losing control over her semblance Ruby turned so that she took most of the impact as the landed with her head hitting the pavement hard. Tightening her grip on Blake for just a moment she tried to push the pain to the back of her mind. Maybe using most of her aura to get Penny away from her escort wasn't the best idea.

"Ruby," Blake hissed with concern as the younger girl groaned in pain. Head wounds were very serious.

Helping her leader sit up she touched the back of the girl's head gently only to feel shocked as she touched something wet. Pulling her fingers away she was horrified to see blood coating them. Ruby blinked feeling dizzy, she looked up at the ongoing fight; it was more important than her injury. Sun was barely holding his own against the mech and Pyrrha looked exhausted from the continued use of her semblance. Neither would last much longer if the fight continued.

"Incoming!"

Jaune's warning caught both their attention as Roman launched another round of missiles at the two girls. It was obvious that he wanted them both out of the fight or he was just getting annoyed; Ruby couldn't really tell. Blake moved quickly gathering her leader in her arms before dashing away, while she wasn't as fast as Ruby or Weiss, she was fast enough to keep Ruby safe.

With an expression of pure anger, Pyrrha used her semblance to catch one of the missiles and send it back at the mech as vindictively as she could. It hit dead center causing the mech to stumble back where Sun waited. Slamming both hands together he used his clones to hit both arms at once. Blake gently set Ruby down on her feet as they watched the mech fall to pieces. Unsheathing her dagger, the reaper kept an eye on their opponent even when her teammates and sun slumped in relief.

Roman landed roughly rolling as he came to a stop. Chancing a glance at his suit he frowned seeing the dirt on his clothing. He'd literally just gotten his clothing cleaned. Standing he wiped off his coat and turned toward the brats. Seeing the opening Ruby dashed forward ignoring the pain in her head as she did so. Roman dodged the attack before a pink boot kicked her away. Neo landed easily in front of her partner while Ruby kneeled a few feet away.

"Well it's been fun Red," Roman mocked tilting his hat to the girl; he ignored his worry at the pained expression on her face. She'd be fine, she was a huntress after all. Nodding to Neo he smirked causing the other kids to bristle. Angered at the treatment of her partner Pyrrha launched herself forward slamming her spear into the multi-colored girl who shattered like glass along with Roman.

It was good that they got away; not just for the sake of the timeline, but also because Ruby wasn't sure what Pyrrha would do to the thief. Knowing that they had to return to Beacon Ruby pushed herself up but stumbled. Feeling herself fall toward the ground she dropped her weapon as firm arms caught her. Glancing up at Sun, she could admit that she saw the reason that Blake liked him.

"You okay there little demon," he asked as Jaune ran to her side.

"Honestly Ruby can you try not to get hurt," the blonde scolded his leader while he used his aura to amplify hers so she would heal. The answering chuckle was all he needed to hear. She would continue to be reckless even if they all got grey hairs. Glancing up at the roof where she'd left her scythe, Ruby pouted. She doubted she'd be able to make it back up to the roof.

"Can someone get my scythe?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys. So the next chapter is more dance prep, along with Tyrian talking to Cora. What did you guys think of Ruby and Penny (I absolutely loved writing their interactions and I tried to go more in-depth in Penny's character)? 
> 
> anyway stay safe and have a good day! 
> 
> \-- Shyla


	21. Old Habits

Ruby sighed as she watched Pyrrha take out Cardin's entire team as if they were toddlers not trained warriors. Not that she thought her partner would beat up a set of toddlers. Feeling her ever-present shadow move she tried to ignore the rush of annoyance and just barely kept it from showing on her face. It'd been two days since Roman escaped from them not that she minded yet in that those two days, Blake hadn't left her side. It was starting to get annoying. She didn't mind her teammates watching her, but she felt as if she was suffocating. Leaning back, she jumped when a hand touched her shoulder.

"Careful," Mercury warned as he stopped her from hitting her head on his boot. Ruby blinked tilting her head to look at the boy before nodding. It would most likely hurt if she hit pure metal. He was probably keeping her from getting brain damage and from discovering his secret.

"Thanks," she said before looking back down at the match that she was supposed to be paying attention to.

She winced in sympathy when Pyrrha slammed Cardin into the floor. The way his body bounced back into the air meant the girl wasn't holding back. Mercury felt the movement from where his hand still rested on her shoulder; looking down at the match he could see the reason for her action. The team of boys had been totally decimated by the redhead. Then again Pyrrha was a world-renown fighter; there weren't many people that could defeat her. Emerald rammed her elbow into his ribs causing him to let go of the girl's shoulder to appease her.

"Now we have time for one last match," Glynda stated before looking up into the stands. She was looking for another victim/volunteer but she would single out a student if no one offered. This close to the Vytal Festival any practice was a boon.

"I want to fight Jaune," Ruby announced before Mercury could even open his mouth. Not only would it cut off him learning about Pyrrha's semblance, but it would also let her teammates learn that she wasn't some fragile flower. Ruby stood easily patting Jaune on the head as she passed him. The boy seemed to be horrified at catching his leader's attention. The look of pure terror he sent at her back caused Mercury to huff in amusement.

When the match started Jaune wasn't sure what to expect. Although Ruby knew all his moves, he knew almost none of her own; he just wasn't fast enough to keep up. Ruby twirled Thorn in her hand and got ready, she wouldn't need her scythe to deal with her poor teammate. Blake watched her leader fight with worry on her face, she even leaned forward to be closer to the fight. Logically she knew Ruby was strong but all she could think about was seeing her hands coated with blood. Pyrrha sat beside her teammate quietly. None of them were oblivious to Blake's mood and all of them thought Ruby's actions were reckless. While she and Jaune were ill-equipped to deal with the faunus emotionally Ruby wasn't. She was also vaguely sure that only Blake would be able to get through to Ruby.

"Your tense," Emerald whispered dragging her partner's attention away from the ongoing fight.

"Sorry," he said. Watching Ruby parry her teammates strike, he felt a bit worried for his little sparring partner. She was far too distracted.

"Both you and Cinder seem attached to that girl," his partner stated with barely concealed jealousy. Brightening Mercury turned away from the fight to look at the crimson eyed girl who stiffened.

"Aw, is Emmy jealous," he teased. The flustered expression on her face was well worth the punch she landed on his shoulder. Catching her hand before she could pull back, he held it tightly as his expression turned serious. While he might tease her, that didn't mean he was blind to her insecurities. Rubbing the back of her hand with his thumb he said, "don't worry you're still our favorite."

Huffing she looked away from him but tellingly didn't try to pull away from him. She tried but sometimes it was hard to ignore the voice in her head that told her she wasn't good enough. Seeing both the people she cared about paying more attention to a girl that wasn't her was scary. What if they decided to replace her? The thought of being alone again wasn't something she liked to entertain. She doubted that she would even survive such a situation.

Down below Ruby knocked away Jaune's swing and held Thorn to his throat winning the match. She smirked at his defeated expression although they'd both expected it to happen. When they first started sparring together, he wouldn't last more than five seconds before losing. He was getting much stronger, but she still couldn't think of him as anything more than the boy who needed her protection.

"I think, I lasted about four minutes that time," Jaune mumbled to himself causing her to laugh.

"Your improving," Ruby assured him and jumped when the bell to end class rang. Glynda announced the dance was that weekend and their training mission was the day after; Ruby had to get the Mt. Glen mission. The two walked toward their teammates while Sun grinned at them.

"Little demon," Sun shouted waving his arms in the air. He not only gained their attention but that of everyone in hearing range.

Ruby looked over at the monkey faunus and his team before grinning. She loved the nickname that Sun had given her. Uncaring of the watching students she got a running start before launching herself at the older boy. Sun caught the girl around the waist and spun her around; it wasn't that hard when she weighed less than half his own body weight. Laughing he set the girl on her feet gently as the rest of her team caught up. Blake smiled at the action and blushed when Sun sent her the same bright grin, he did Ruby.

"What's up," Ruby asked. Returning their waves, she beamed as Sage ruffled her hair. Keeping his bright grin even as Jaune and Neptune shared a look of parental exasperation, Sun turned to Blake with a grin.

"Hey, I was wondering if you wanted to come to the dance with me," he asked. Hearing the hope in his voice, Ruby grinned despite the bitter feeling she felt. Blake seemed to think about it for a moment.

"I don't-".

"She'd love to," the reaper told him brightly. Blake deserved to happy and now that she'd succeeded with getting Pyrrha and Jaune together she needed a new target. The happy grin on Sun's face was well worth it. Lacing her arm around her teammates she said, "but first we have to go down to Vale and get my dress."

"Cool," Sun said although Blake didn't look very happy about the situation. She looked over at her exited leader before sighing. There was no way she could deny her leader anything.

"I'll see you at the dance Sun," she said as Ruby spun on her heel and headed for the door dragging her teammate with her.

Neither saw the expression their partners sent at their backs or the way Sun jumped in the air from excitement. Walking toward the bullheads, Ruby hummed softly her head swinging as she moved with the sound. The dance was going to be fun for her teammates. Now everyone she cared about had a date. It was hard to describe why that idea caused her to feel bitter. She didn't want to feel jealous of her friends, but that didn't make the emotion go away.

Hearing Blake sigh, she looked up at the older girl. There was a concerned look on her teammate's face that caused her to feel slightly guilty. She knew that the other girl cared about her, and Blake didn't deserve to be the focus of her dark emotions. Grinning she made sure that none of her bitter emotions showed.

"Want to tell me what's wrong now," she asked. Blake winced the memory of Ruby laying in her arms weak flashing to the front of her mind.

"Ruby you could have died," Blake said softly as they got onto the bullhead. She hated the thought of losing the younger girl; no matter how strong she was still mortal. Wincing slightly, she said, "you could have died saving me."

"I'd do it again in a heartbeat, do you actually think I would let you or Pyrrha or Jaune take a blow that I could block," Ruby stated easily. Her teammates were much more important than her. Even with all her plans she would throw everything away in order to protect those she cared about. Knowing the future did not mean she was immune to feeling human, nor did she fear death. She knew what was waiting on her when she died.

Blake stared at the girl before she felt a sudden rush of anger. Almost snarling she pulled her leader into a corner of the airship where no one could hear them. she didn't even try to hide the rage on her face as she asked, "do you think your life is worth less than ours?"

The words were said with such brutal hate that for a moment Ruby was surprised. She hadn't expected Blake to take the words so seriously. For a moment she didn't understand why her teammate was so angry. They were huntresses, risking their lives was necessary. Tilting her head slightly she raised an eyebrow at the feline faunus.

"You charge recklessly into battles and take on all our problems as if you had none of your own. Eventually you're going to get yourself killed," Blake said once it became obvious her leader wasn't going to say anything.

The two girls stood in silence as Ruby tried to figure out how to respond to her teammate. Everything that the girl had said was true, but did the other girl expect her to stand back and do nothing when their team was in danger? She was a warrior, a Branwen, she would not allow her teammates to get hurt. Was she reckless? Yes, she never claimed to be the most careful person in the world. She'd been trained to attack rather than back out of situations.

"Blake, I care about you and the others, and I won't apologize for keeping you safe," Ruby said looking over at the faunus and forcing a smile onto her face. She could understand her teammate's concern, but it was misplaced. Running a hand through her hair she said, "I'd rather die a thousand times than allow any of you to get hurt."

"But that's not fair," Blake protested grabbing Ruby shoulders. She'd seen far too many people die in the White Fang and hearing those words form her leader scared her. Why couldn't Ruby understand that they would be worse off without her? Stilling Blake almost cursed herself for not trying the team approach in the first place. Hoping that she could get through to her teammate she said, "what if you die and leave us all alone! You're our leader and I would rather you not die by making a stupid mistake!"

Ruby's breath hitched when she saw the tears pooling in Blake's eyes. She hadn't actually thought about how her team would feel if she died; she'd assumed they would just move on without her. Her whole life as Alice she didn't have anyone to rely on, so no one would care if she'd died. She'd been alone and without thinking she'd applied the same practices she used to keep herself safe from her family. As Ruby she had a family and friends, she could let down the walls that she built around her emotions, so how did she manage to push Blake this far? She would need to think about this and examine some of her plans.

"I didn't think," Ruby said aloud reaching up to wipe away the tears that the older girl shed. Catching sight of her teammates pinned back ears, she winced a bit before saying, "I'm so sorry I worried you Blake, but I promise I won't die."

"You can't know that," Blake whispered but somehow seeing the soft smile on her leaders face she could believe it. She could have faith in the fact Ruby wouldn't die without a fight. It was nice to know that Ruby would fight for her own life now instead of just for them.

"Now onto happier topics," Ruby ordered pulling the faunus down onto the floor with her. It wouldn't help either of them to dwell on negative topics. Ruby lightly touched her hair before asking, "do you want to help me cut my hair?"

(Tyrian)

He was finally strong enough to move, so he was here sitting in front of the fire. It didn't really make sense to him; he was going to accuse the soup of having sedatives in it. Running a hand over his tail, he glanced at the woman sitting as far from him as possible on the small couch. She hadn't softened toward him even a little bit over the last few days, she was still watching him as if he was a threat to her and her daughter.

He didn't really mind being the focus of her attention, nor did he mind her daughter. He was slightly surprised at that fact, but he supposed it was due to how quiet the girl was. While the kid was usually by her mother's side, she did have a habit of approaching him when she thought he wasn't looking. Most of the time, she simply read a book beside him while he plotted. She was still skittish around him with good reason, but she didn't have anything to fear. His goddess had told him to find the Winter Maiden not to make an enemy of her.

"Ozpin or Salem," Cora asked finally. Her daughter was in her room fast asleep, so she didn't have to worry about the child overhearing. Reaching up to pull at the red pendant of her necklace she almost didn't want to know the answer.

"Why my Goddess of course," he said brightly. The wild grin on his face should have scared her but it didn't.

At least it wasn't Ozpin trying to recruit her against her will again. The last time he'd tried to force her to stay in Atlas, she'd been pregnant with Eliza. It wouldn't have been so bad if the man she loved hadn't called her a freak after she saved his life. Still she would rather live out her life here with her daughter in relative safety than have anything to do with the war between Ozpin and Salem. In her mind they were both causes she had no desire to fight for, however, this was the first time an agent of Salem had found her.

She'd heard millions of horror stories from Ozpin about what Salem would do to her but was any of that really worse than Ozpin. He'd tried to use her daughter against her; she had no doubt he would use anything or anyone he could to win the shadow war. She had no desire to be a pawn in either of their games. For ten, almost eleven, years she'd stayed her isolated just so that she wouldn't be used or hurt by anyone.

After creating a literal tornado of ice and cold to protect her, she'd made a life he away from the kingdoms. No grimm could get inside and the weather never changed unless she wanted it to. This was her world; she'd created it for her daughter. If the war between Salem and Ozpin came to her doorstep what would she do? Just one look at the man beside her and she knew he was a warrior, and maybe more than a little insane. She didn't want to fight him, hell she didn't want to fight anyone. Despite her family being born warriors she had no desire to go to war with anyone over anything. She was perfectly happy right where she was. She wanted peace.

"What does your Goddess need from me," she asked. Using his title for Salem might've been a mistake since his eyes lit up. The wild smile on his face turned just a little more genuine and she almost relaxed.

"Come with me and find out," he offered. For just a second Cora stared at him, before her defenses slammed back into place.

"No."

Standing she left the faunus sitting on the couch alone as she almost fled back to her bedroom. She didn't care that he was watching her go or that he looked so confused at her quick refusal. The only thing she cared about was the fact that leaving her personal world would make her and her daughter a target for not only Salem and Ozpin but for the family, she'd left behind as well. It was fear that kept her isolated here just as much as the longing for peace. Nothing would ever happen or change if she stayed and she was fine with that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys.
> 
> So this was a more transitional chapter than anything else. The next chapter is the start of the dance which will be broken into two chapters, so what did you all think of Cora and Tyrian?
> 
> Also, I've been thinking about writing an original story on Wattpad, would you guys be interested in reading something like that?
> 
> As always, stay safe and have a good day.
> 
> \- Shyla


	22. Fathers Gift

"Are you sure I look okay," Ruby asked tugging on her now choppy shoulder-length hair. Looking in the mirror it was strange to see canon Ruby's hairstyle on her body. Sure, she'd asked for this but somehow it felt strange, not wrong just strange to see anything other than long hair. The red tips were more pronounced than ever as they tickled her neck. She didn't mind the hairstyle, and it was mainly for necessity. Letting her hair get in the way when they went to Mt. Glen would have been a bad idea.

Blake rolled her eyes as she heard the younger girl ask the question for the third time. It had been amusing the first time but now she was just annoyed at the repeated question. Grabbing Ruby's hand, she stopped the girl from tugging on her hair, like she'd been doing for the last hour. It was cute that Ruby was so insecure about her hair, but Ruby still had to get dressed.

"It looks fine," she assured for the third time and gestured to the box waiting on Ruby's bed. She herself was already dressed for the dance and waiting on her leader to stop panicking. Yanking her leader toward the bed where her dress was located Blake almost shoved the younger girl toward it as she said, "now get ready we only have an hour left until we have to go."

Ruby pouted as Blake rushed to take her spot in the mirror. Laying a hand on the box holding her dress she couldn't help but feel nervous; this was her first dance in either lifetime. Nic hadn't allowed them to look in the box before they left his shop stating that he had no desire to see her freak out. His words had honestly not filled her with confidence but there was nothing she could do about it now. Opening the box, she was pleasantly surprised to see the red fabric.

Catching sight of the envelope on top of the dress she stilled for a moment before picking it up slowly. Her name was written in red ink in the form of her father's chicken scratch writing. Briefly hearing the door open and shut as Blake rushed off to meet Sun, she opened the envelope. Pulling out the letter she wanted to cry as she read over the words.

_Hey kid,_

_I know you're most likely dreading going to a school dance, I know I was. It was worse for me since Tai kept trying to get me into a dress. Anyway, I wanted my favorite niece to look amazing tonight, so I went ahead and paid our grumpy smith to make the dress look even better than it was supposed to. It didn't take much convincing to be honest._

_Now I know you don't have a date tonight, and before you accuse me of spying on you, I'll remind you that I watched you grow up. I'd bet my flask that you got every single person around you a date before even thinking about yourself. Kid, you're habit of mothering people isn't half as good as you try to pretend it is. You should take better care of yourself._

_Anyway, that's the end of my lecture. I enclosed a little accessory for you to wear tonight. Think of it was a right of passage for the Branwen tribe as my favorite niece you get to wear it. Now as your uncle I'm ordering you to go and have fun. Dance with as many guys or girls as you want and come home a little drunk; just don't dance with any terrorists._

_Love Qrow_

_Ps. Don't tell Tai about the getting drunk part. Please!_

Cardin fixed his green tie for the seventh time and looked around for Ruby. The reaper hadn't told him she would be arriving late so her not showing up was causing him to worry. The amused expression on Russel's face as he watched the door was also distracting but he could do nothing more than shift and hope everything would be okay. Did Ruby even have a date? He'd been so worried about how to ask out Russel that he'd forgotten to make sure that she would have someone to dance with. Taking the glass of punch that his date held out to him, he felt the urge to go off and find her.

It was Yang's excited squeal that finally caused him to relax; Ruby had arrived. Watching the blonde bounce in place he rolled his eyes before turning his attention to the dark-haired girl who wore an indulgent smile. For a moment he was stunned to see her in a dress; she'd never actually worn one around him before. Her confident expression seemed to radiate as she twirled in place for her sister's inspection.

Ruby wore a dark red halter style dress that reached her knees although he couldn't see any dust lining, he was willing to bet it was there. A slit up the right side showed her dagger and the black leggings she wore under the dress, of course, she wouldn't go anywhere without a weapon. On her feet were dark silver heeled shoes that he was willing to bet were reinforced with steel just so that she had another weapon. The biggest change though was her hair; the once long hair was cut and had red ends, but the accessory was the biggest surprise. Hanging from her hair was a black crow's feather that faded to red.

"So what do you think," she asked twirling for her big sister who beamed down at her.

"You look amazing Ruby," Yang said softly as she reached out to touch the feather hanging in the younger girl's hair.

"It's from Qrow," she said when she noticed the curiosity in her sister's eyes. Catching sight of Weiss trying and failing to look insignificant she giggled. The heiress would never be able to go unnoticed. Shooing her sister in the direction of the white-haired girl she said, "go dance with Weiss before she feels abandoned."

Rolling her eyes as her sister took off to join her date, Ruby glanced around the ballroom easily noticing the eyes on her, including Mercury and Emeralds. Winking at the two disguised criminals, she walked toward Cardin and Russel. The green-haired boy rolled his eyes in her direction but did nothing to dissuade her as she stalked toward them.

"I like your hair better now," Cardin stated once she was in hearing range. The reaper brightened offering him a smile as Russel huffed.

"Red looks good on you," the boy said mostly to be polite.

"Thanks guys."

It was honestly surprising that Russel would give her any kind of compliment, but she supposed he might be a tsundere. She already knew he felt threatened by her relationship to Cardin. It was cute how defensive he was around her, although she doubted, he thought the same. Seeing Cardin shift slightly she tilted her head as he offered her his hand and asked for a dance. She only accepted after Russel gave a tiny nod of approval.

Ruby smiled as Cardin led her out onto the dance floor, dancing with her best friend was something she could enjoy. The smile on his face had replaced his usual smirk and she was happy he was having fun, all the energy she'd put into pushing him and Russel together would have been wasted if he wasn't. Her teammates were happily dancing with their dates making tonight perfect. Her father might be right about her choice to look after herself last, but she didn't think that was a bad thing. She liked seeing the people she cared about happy. There was nothing wrong with that.

She could have fun tonight, even if that bitter feeling in her chest wouldn't go away. All she had to do was dance with her friends and keep a smile on her face; it wasn't hard. Catching sight of Jaune leading Pyrrha around the dance floor, she tightened her grip on Cardin's hand.

"It's okay to be jealous," Cardin said regaining her attention. She might be good at hiding her emotions, but he could feel them.

"I'm not," she said softly.

There was a warning in her tone that he knew he should listen to but he didn't want to. Besides he'd always been good at pushing people's buttons and Ruby was no different. Ignoring the sharp glare, she sent him, he frowned down at her even as they moved through the steps of the dance perfectly. He'd be leaving for Atlas soon and he needed to know that she wouldn't kill herself by pretending that everything was fine.

"Ruby… I'm an empath remember," he reminded her with a gentle tone. From the way, her grip on him tightened she hadn't forgotten that fact. Sighing, because of course, Ruby would rather hide her emotions than confront them, he said, "it's okay t- "

"Leave it alone Cardin," she hissed causing his jaw to slam shut. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath as she plastered a smile on her face.

The rest of their dance was spent in silence. He didn't know how to talk to her without getting snapped at and she didn't want to admit to being wrong. It was true that she felt a little jealousy at the happy couples dancing around them, but she didn't want it to matter. She was happy for her friends, whatever else she felt shouldn't matter. Besides her dad had told her to have fun.

Breaking away from Cardin as the dance ended, she offered him a small apologetic smile. She hadn't meant to snap at him, she'd just wanted him to stop talking. For a moment he seemed to hesitate before rolling his eyes with a smirk. Patting her on the shoulder he headed off toward Russel as she moved toward Blake. The faunus was the only one of her teammates who wasn't currently dancing. Instead the feline was laughing at something that Sun had said.

Unlike usual, her teammate's faunus trait was on full display. The black cat ears tilted in her direction as she approached causing Ruby to smirk. It was nice to see her teammate showing her trait rather than trying to hide it. Of course, the lack of a bow might be due to Ruby hiding it but she would never admit to that. She would return the bow once the dance was over.

Meeting her teammate's golden eyes with her own she raised an eyebrow at the feline. She was glad that Blake was having fun, even more so because she was sure Sun was having a good time as well. The blonde was like an eager to please child, but most of all he did genuinely care about her teammate. With Sun she was vaguely sure that Blake could be happy.

"Hey Ruby," Neptune greeted the second she got within range. Grinning at him she offered a small nod as Sun pulled Blake right back out onto the dance floor.

Smirking slightly Ruby was mildly surprised when Neptune asked her to dance; from what she remembered the blue-haired boy couldn't dance. Taking a moment to look at his face she noticed the almost terrified expression following his words. It was obvious that he was asking only to be polite. She doubted he would survive the embarrassment if she actually took him up on the offer. Lucky for him, she had no desire to make him embarrass himself for her own amusement.

"No thanks, I think I'll just wander over to the punch bowl for a moment," she said. Much to her amusement the moment she said the words he looked as if she'd saved his life. Chuckling to herself she moved away from the blue-haired boy.

Passing by her sister who was trying to teach Weiss how to dance as if she was in a dance club, she raised an eyebrow at the indulgent expression on the heiress's face. It was nice to see Weiss come out of her shell, she hoped that Yang didn't manage to mess up their relationship. Not only would that hurt her plans, but she was looking forward to having Weiss as a sister; eventually. Making it to the punch bowl she gave a small wave at the antisocial people awkwardly hovering around it.

Most of them were visiting students or those that had been dragged to the dance by their teammates. In another life she would have been one of them, but this dance was a chance to have fun. Pouring a glass of punch, she wondered vaguely if Cinder was heading toward the CCT yet. She'd been chancing glances out the door every so often, but she hadn't noticed the woman. In truth she couldn't wait to start a fight with Cinder, it would be interesting to see how she held up against a Maiden. Even if she only had half the power.

"Did your date abandon you," Mercury asked gaining her attention.

He was leading Emerald over to the punch bowl, probably to get a drink. Moving out of the green-haired girl's way, Ruby noticed the curious yet guarded expression on her face. It made sense that the girl would be wary of her, after all, Emerald was the only one out of the three that she'd never met. Taking a sip from her glass she took a second to think over what she should say before deciding to go with honesty. It wasn't as if they could use her lack of a date against her.

"Never had one," she said keeping a smile on her face.

Mercury blinked in shock. How did the most amusing person he'd ever met not have a date? Glancing at Emerald he noticed the resignation on her face as she came to the same conclusion that he did. Her partner was just to kind sometimes; and they accused her of being the soft one. Both Cinder and Mercury had a habit of showing care to those they grew fond of.

"Damn, that sucks," he muttered. Reaching up to scratch at his neck, he frowned. He didn't like seeing his favorite sparring standing here alone. Turning to Emerald he said, "Hey Em, I'm going to dance with little red."

"Do what you want," the girl said. She sounded annoyed as she took a sip of her punch. Wrinkling her nose almost instantly afterward, she threw an annoyed glance at the punch bowl.

"Well, care to join me," Mercury asked the smaller girl.

For a moment she simply stared at his hand in confusion. Why would Mercury ask her to dance? It wasn't as if her being alone affected him in any way. Was he simply trying to be nice? Staring at the hand he held out to her, she tightened her grip on her drink before raising it to her lips and downing it in a single motion. It was nice to know that Yang hadn't gotten around to spiking the punch bowl yet.

"How embarrassed would you be if I said no," she asked once she'd laid her glass on the table.

"Enough to make our next sparring match very uncomfortable," he said. The glint in his eyes told her that she would regret refusing after he'd so graciously offered to dance with her.

Laughing at the expression on his face, she took his hand and allowed him to pull her out onto the dance floor as a slow song started playing. From the unamused glare he sent at a speaker, he didn't approve of the song choice. It was obvious that he hadn't even considered the next dance being a slow dance. She hadn't expected it either.

It might've been better if she called off their dance completely, but when she started to move away from him his arms closed around her waist. Feeling her body freeze she met his eyes only to see stubborn determination. He had started this, and he would finish it, even if he did feel Emerald burning a hole into his back with her gaze. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that she was going to tattle to Cinder the second the woman returned.

"Yeah, let's suffer together," he mumbled trying to ignore his partner. Ruby let out a very unladylike snort as she brought her hands up to rest on his shoulders.

"It could be worse," she said. Letting him take the lead she felt mildly embarrassed when he chuckled at her response.

Although dancing with him was strange Ruby still found herself able to smile. This was the proof she needed that Mercury wasn't heartless; unless he was trying to seduce her, but she doubted that was the case. To their knowledge she wasn't even a threat. It was easy for just a moment to let herself be happy, despite the darkness she knew was coming, she couldn't bring herself to be worried. She felt safe; well as safe as one could be while dancing with an assassin. In her mind it might be a guarantee that as long as she never became an enemy to him, she might not have anything to fear from him. As the song ended the two stepped off the dance floor and she spotted Penny standing alone under guard. She did owe the android a dance. Plus she was sure that Mercury would start to tease her and she really didn't want to deal with that.

"I'm going to say high to a friend," she told him and waited until he released her hand to walk over to Penny.

The girl's green eyes widened when she saw her friend and an innocent smile appeared on her face. Penny was all innocence wrapped up in a cute package. Feeling protective of the ginger girl she glanced at Penny's guards who shifted slightly away from her. It was the same two that she'd stolen Penny away from last time and it was obvious that they still remembered her.

"Salutations, Ruby," Penny stated pulling Ruby into a hug. Returning the hug, she was amused by the fact it was Penny initiating the action. Briefly she considered tickling the other girl but decided against it; she would always have time to tease Penny latter. The reaper pulled away before grabbing both the girl's hands and trying to pull her out onto the dance floor. It would have been a lot easier if Penny wasn't made of metal.

"Come on let's dance," she said brightly.

Nodding eagerly Penny followed the other girl out onto the dance floor as the song turned more upbeat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, so this is part one of the dance. The Fight with Cinder will be in part too. What did you think of Ruby's attitude toward the dance? 
> 
> Anyway, stay safe and have a good day. 
> 
> \--Shyla


	23. Dancing with a Terrorist

After dancing with Penny, and several other people including her sister, she was done. Her feet were starting to hurt from the shoes she was wearing which gave her all the confidence she needed to say that she was done with dancing for tonight. Reaching up to tug at the accessory in her hair she moved toward the door hoping to have a nice encounter with a masked terrorist only to be stopped by Ozpin.

"Hello headmaster, I don't suppose you're here to wish me goodnight," she asked as he kept himself between her and her escape.

"I'm afraid I've come to ask for a dance," he said both ruining her hopes and igniting her curiosity at the same time. Still she didn't know what he wanted from her and she had no desire to be a pawn in his game.

"I wonder if you realize the consequences of a professor asking a student to dance," she asked making sure to keep her tone light. It was the same tone she'd used on the day they first met.

"Ah, your fall back sarcasm," he mused. Looking down at her he noticed the tension in her shoulders. It was easy for him to see the defensive expression on her face, even under the open smile she wore. Smiling slightly as she reminded him of both her mother and father he said, "I assure you, Miss. Rose there is no reason for you to feel defensive."

The almost instinctive urge to point out that she wasn't feeling defensive was pushed back. If she argued, then she would be proving his point. Her only option was to accept his outstretched hand or look like a child. For just a second, she wanted to slap away his hand before walking out the door, but she would regret it later. She didn't need to make Ozpin her enemy; not right now. With a sigh she took his hand.

In some ways dancing with Mercury was more comfortable than dancing with Ozpin. She didn't hate the man, but she hated him forcing her to dance with him especially because they were now the center of attention. Keeping a smile on her face, she tried to ignore the stares. Just letting him lead her around the dancefloor was bad enough but the amused glow in his eyes made it worse.

"It's nice to finally get some time to talk to you," he admitted. The hand on her hip felt like iron as he ignored the music entirely. The waltz they danced was a contradiction to the upbeat music.

"Oh… it's not as if I've been ignoring you," she said. If he'd wanted to talk to her then all he'd have to do was call her up to his office.

"True. I've noticed you've settled in well for being younger than your peers," he praised. To most students that would seem a good thing, but she didn't know if gaining his attention was something that she wanted.

"It does seem age isn't the defining feature of a huntress," she said.

Smirking as he remembered a certain red-eyed student saying something similar, he wondered if Qrow would be arriving soon. Glancing at the feather in her hair he knew without a doubt that his suspicion had been correct. The girl in front of him was Summer's daughter and Qrow's. The coming weeks would be interesting especially when it came to the silver-eyed girl dancing with him.

"Skill is the defining feature of a huntress, I look forward to seeing what skill you will show in the future," he said. Catching the spark of annoyance in her eyes, he smiled as she finally grew tired of playing his game.

"You should enjoy yourself, professor, our fates could change at any given moment," she warned as he released her. The cold glare on her face didn't change as she stalked away from him.

"Yes, they could," he whispered in agreement as the girl walked out of the ballroom. One day his children might have to fight in this war, and he knew that Ruby would be at the forefront, he just didn't know whose side she would be on.

Trying to put her dance with Ozpin out of her mind Ruby almost cheered when she saw Cinder's form leap across the rooftops toward the CCT. At least she could take her frustration out on someone who would give her a challenge. Hiding a smirk as she walked toward the CCT tower. She could still feel Ozpin's burning touch on her skin, and she hated it. While she knew he wouldn't do anything to harm her directly there was something about him that caused her instincts to rampage.

She could tell someone about the woman, but she wanted to fight; after her dance with Ozpin she needed to start a fight. The worst part of the situation was that she would rather fight a losing battle against a corrupt Maiden then spend one more moment in the ballroom. Also, she wanted to try drawing attention to the fact someone had hacked the CCT, she doubted it would work.

Seeing the unconscious guards laying on the ground she winced feeling sorry for them. They'd never stood a chance against someone like Cinder. Stepping into the elevator she gently moved the guards, so they were stuffed into one corner instead of letting them be in her way. She might feel for them but that didn't mean she would take the time to check on them. After all, she could tell they were alive, and it wasn't as if she was a doctor.

Knowing what and who was waiting on her she didn't hesitate in drawing Thorn, before she stepped out of the elevator. Seeing no one she held the dagger in a reverse grip and said, "seeing as there are knocked out guards everywhere hiding isn't really a good way to go here."

Cinder's lips twitched up at the sarcastic tone despite the girl interfering she had to admit Ruby reminded her of a more moral Mercury. The girl's sarcasm was most likely a defense mechanism, but she knew Ruby was more than willing to fight her. After watching the girl spar with Mercury, she was more than confident that she would be able to beat the child. Even without using the Maiden powers she was sure that Ruby would never be able to beat her.

Standing she held a bottle of dust taking a moment to wave it in the girl's direction. Ruby raised an eyebrow and waited causing Cinder to smirk. She didn't have to wait long until the woman threw the dust into the air and formed ice sickles; Cinder's skill with dust was slightly worrying. Ruby herself was horrible with using dust. The most she could do with the elemental substance was shoot at the enemy. If it hadn't been for Nic beating it into her head, she wouldn't even be able to use her jacket or this dress.

Flipping back, she dodged in a clean motion despite the heels on her feet. The graceful movement was enough to avoid the testing attack much to Cinder's amusement. Landing Ruby channeled aura into her dress and grinned when it lit up with bright white lines of dust; lightning dust to improve her speed. Lightning sparked a violent red along Thorn's blade, and she activated her semblance before lunging toward the woman.

Cinder blocked the dagger with her glass blade before jumping back as it shattered on impact. Raising an eyebrow, she avoided a thrust from Ruby's blade almost on instinct. The girl had been fast when fighting Mercury, but it was nothing compared to the speed she displayed now. She supposed that was the lightning dust embedded in the redhead's dress. Briefly she wondered if Ruby had prepared for the possibility of fighting tonight but disregarded it.

As soon as the girl landed, she was moving again, like a tornado of red she twisted around Cinder's attacks. Her speed combined with the dust made her almost invisible, yet the woman managed to keep up with her. The deadly dance took a playful edge as Ruby let slip a laugh causing Cinder to notice her wild grin. Shaking her head in slight exasperation, the woman allowed a small smirk to appear on her face.

After the girl shattered several more of her blades Cinder decided to end the battle before they got interrupted by someone more dangerous than Ruby. Jumping into the air she formed her bow and shot at the ground in order to stop the girl's circling. Ruby stumbled back from the explosion the arrows infused with fire dust made and Cinder took that chance to escape leaving behind nothing but a shattered window. At that same moment, a confused General walked in.

Sheathing Thorn, she deactivated the dust in her dress while hiding her pout. She'd been having fun and Ironwood just had to ruin it, didn't he? Oh well, it wasn't as if she could blame him for interrupting a fight with a terrorist. Now at least she knew where she stood compared to Cinder. Despite the woman holding back so that they'd be on equal terms, she knew that Cinder was stronger than her.

Ironwood looked around for a second before taking out his scroll to call reinforcements. He didn't even entertain the idea that Ruby had broken into the CCT herself, Ruby was many things, but she wasn't a terrorist. There were also signs of a battle that one person couldn't make on their own. Ozpin might also try to kill him if he accused his student of working for Salem.

She watched the general sound the alarm and pulled out a chair as the adrenaline started to fade. Having never fought in heels before she had no idea that it would hurt so much; how Weiss fought in these was a mystery. Sitting she reached down pulling off her heels as she considered throwing them out the window in return for the pain they caused her. She had a feeling that her team was going to be more than annoyed when she told them about this adventure.

"Miss Rose if you could follow me to Ozpin's office," James said before looking down at her now bare feet. Coughing slightly, he looked away from her annoyed glare before saying, "or I can have him come here."

"That would be better," she said. Gaining a nod, she watched as he pulled out his scroll again. Rubbing her feet, she cursed herself for trying to fight in heels but knew that taking them off would have been worse. Looking at the general she decided that now would be the best time to try and raise the alarm. Making her voice as innocent as possible she asked, "is it possible for the CCT to be hacked?"

"It shouldn't be," he said sounding offended at the very idea. Watching his eyes light up with pride she barely kept herself from rolling her eyes as he said, "they were made to be un-hackable."

"Or maybe the right hacker hadn't come along yet," she said causing him to stop and think.

If she was right, then the whole system could be compromised and if they found out about Penny it could lead to war. Knowing that Atlas had an android disguised as a sweet little girl would frighten people; many would call for her to be dismantled. He would go to war before allowing anything to happen to Penny. Gritting his teeth, he decided that looking into this incident would be his priority. After of course he moved all the most important files, like those on Penny to a private server.

"James why have you detained one of my students," Ozpin asked exiting the elevator. Ruby heard the warning in his voice. The man sounded dangerous. It was nice to know that he cared about her enough to try starting a fight. Smirking she glanced between the two men before deciding watching them fight for her own entertainment wasn't a good idea.

"Sorry headmaster," Ruby said. Despite her words he gave a final glare at Ironwood who seemed to shrink under the heat, before turning his attention to her. When the man looked over at her she held up her shoes as evidence as she said, "I tried to fight in heels, and now my feet hurt."

His guard dropped faster than ever as he chuckled. Glynda had been in a similar situation when she started learning how to fight in heels. Watching the girl closely he relaxed even further when he saw no injuries on her body. Smiling slightly, he ignored the startled stare from Ironwood who was shocked at her bluntness. Her attitude was just another difference between the stoic Atlas Academy and Beacon's own hectic atmosphere.

Slipping back on her shoes reluctantly; she actually felt the urge to burn the things but that would be a waste. Standing she said, "now just so you don't drag me into your office in the early hours of tomorrow morning, it seemed like the same woman that was with Torchwick the night we met. She also said something about a hideout in the southeast."

"Is that all Miss Rose," Ozpin asked looking down at the girl with concern. The smirk on her face didn't change as she stretched.

"Yep, now I'm going to bed," she told him and started walking to the elevator much to Ironwood's worry.

"Actually, I would head back to the dance," he suggested holding up his hand to stop Ironwoods response. He knew that his old friend would argue but Ruby was his student not Ironwoods. Offering her a gentle smile he said, "your team is looking for you."

Waving to let him know she was listening the girl entered the elevator before reaching up to touch the feather in her hair. Her father could never find out that she went and danced with a terrorist. He would worry far too much. Besides it wasn't as if she was ever in any danger from Cinder. At most the woman would have burned her a little bit; she couldn't exactly kill a student without raising the alarm.

"Oz, you can't be serious-"

Was all she heard the general say before the doors to the elevator slid closed cutting him off. Personally, she was a little happy that she couldn't hear him anymore. Shaking her head, she leaned back against the wall and sighed in slight exhaustion. Tonight, was fun, more fun than she'd thought it would be. Grinning she couldn't keep the bounce from her step as she walked back to the ballroom.

Humming softly, she caught sight of Cinder dancing with Mercury and made a choice that might get her in trouble later. Keeping an innocent smile on her face she walked over to the pair before tapping Mercury on the shoulder. Meeting the heated gaze Cinder sent in her direction she felt her smile widen. The boy seemed confused, but Ruby didn't really care to pay attention to him.

"Mind if I cut in," she asked keeping her eyes on Cinder. Amusement lit up the woman's gaze as the two stepped away from one another.

"We-"

"Not you Merc," Cinder said cutting him off before he could refuse. Sizing up the smaller girl with her gaze, she didn't notice the glance Mercury and Emerald exchanged. How cruel of the girl to demand another dance so soon after their last. Still…

"I guess it would be a bit rude to refuse."

Taking the woman's hand, Ruby felt their aura clash as they both tested one another. Closing her eyes as Cinder tugged her close, she felt safe comparing the woman's aura to a burning flame. However, that flame was more of a comforting one than being any danger. It was just for a moment but the bitter feeling she'd had since the dance was announced seemed to fade away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys; this is the conclusion to the dance. I didn't change too much; anyway what did you guys think. Also, the first chapter of one of my original stories will be out tomorrow, I'll post a link or something in my profile.
> 
> The next chapter is the start of Mt. Glen. Yay.
> 
> As always stay safe and have a good day
> 
> -Shyla


	24. Fall

After telling her team about the encounter at the CCT she'd been grounded by Jaune and Blake. Apparently, this was another of her lovely self-destructive tendencies and reckless actions. They loved it when she pointed out that they had a mission to go on and that they couldn't enforce her grounding. From the glare on Jaune's face she would be paying for her attitude later. It wasn't going to be a subtle punishment either. Another change form last night was the feather accessory in her hair; she wasn't sure what her dad meant about it being a Branwen right of passage. It had come from her dad, there was no way she was going to take it off.

Walking toward the bullhead that would take them to Mt. Glen, she didn't expect to be stopped by her sisters' team or for Yang to yell some excuse about Ren being allergic to dogs as Zwei was shoved in her arms. From the labored sneezing coming from the black-haired boy it was entirely possible that he might actually have a dog allergy.

Still, Ruby looked at Yang in disbelief as she was handed the black and white dog that Tai had shipped in the mail. They should probably tell him to stop, but she was far to amused to start that conversation. Zwei was adorable and would help during the mission but at the same time, it was annoying how Yang simply didn't want to deal with the dog and passed it off to her. Just because Tai sent Zwei to them to watch did not mean she wanted to watch the dog. Not that she didn't love Zwei she was just more of a cat person.

"Sure, I'll watch him," she said lying through her teeth and her sister grinned. Zwei was more than capable of watching himself, especially since he lived with all three of them and didn't die. Apparently, Yang either didn't care that she was lying, or she couldn't tell; not that she expected her to. Only Cardin could see through her lies without trying. Yang ruffled her sister's hair, a giant grin on her face.

"Thanks, sis," she said heading for the bullhead that would take her team on their mission. The longing glance Weiss sent at the dog in her arms had the reaper making a mental not to get the heiress a dog or any kind of pet. Deciding that she didn't want to deal with this Ruby looked over at her team helplessly.

"She does know we have to leave too right," Ruby asked with a voice full of sarcasm. Feeling Zwei lick her face she softened while Blake glared at the dog. She'd forgotten about Blake's issues with dogs, but it was kind of cute how the cat faunus was afraid of dogs. Not that she would bring that up with her teammate. She was reckless, not suicidal.

"I guess we can bring him with us," Jaune said. He looked over at Pyrrha for her opinion the moment he said the words. It seemed that now that they were together, he was trying not to make major decisions without her. Ruby thought it was cute that they were still in the awkward phase of their new relationship. She was going to take enough blackmail pictures to last a lifetime.

"I don't see an issue with it," Pyrrha said.

"Good, Jaune once we get there you're in charge of watching the dog," Ruby ordered causing him to blink in shock.

Ruby nodded, in agreement with her own choice, she put the dog on the ground. Watching him go over to greet her teammates, she smirked at the horrified expression on Blake's face. It wasn't as if the dog was going to kill the faunus. Giggling at the faunus, Ruby wasn't the least bit guilty when Blake glared at her nor was, she threatened.

After Blake got over the fact there was a dog within five feet of her body the four, plus Zwei, walked over to the bullhead that would take them on their mission. The huntsman they would be shadowing at Mt. Glenn was Dr. Oobleck, who Ruby knew was an amazing huntsman. He smiled when he saw the dog and began gushing about how much help Zwei would be as he spun the dog in the air. Ruby honestly thought she should get the man a dog for his birthday. He seemed like he needed a friend that wasn't coffee.

Stepping into the airship Blake moved the trashcan over to Jaune who gave her a weak smile. Their blonde teammate's motion sickness was a well-known issue; they'd also made a pact that if a battle started on an airship, they would let Jaune deal with the issue. Pyrrha immediately moved over to her boyfriend's side, she would most likely try and comfort him during the trip. Ruby herself simply gave him a pat on the back before getting as far away as possible. Feeling Zwei sit down at her feet she reached down to scratch the dog behind his ears.

Ruby frowned as everyone listened to Oobleck explain about their destination and their mission. She was only half-listening to the man, as she thought about how she could get Roman on her side. The thief was important, not only to her plans but as a person. She didn't want to let anyone die if she could help it; the fact that she actually liked the man made her extremely biased.

She would get her chance to talk to him alone though in the next few days, she just hoped that he would listen. How hard could it be to convince a thief that he should abandon one master to serve another? Given her experience as Alice she supposed it all depended on how loyal Roman was to the woman. To some criminal's loyalty was everything while to others it was nothing. Sighing she leaned over and rested her head on Blake's shoulder. Why couldn't she think of a good way to talk to him? Closing her eyes she tried to think of a way to get him on her side that didn't require a battle.

If nothing else she could always challenge him to a fight and recruit him after he lost. Not that she was arrogant enough to think beating Roman would be easy, but he couldn't beat her. If she stopped holding back, she doubted that the man would last against her, however, if Neo joined the fight then she would lose. Fighting two on one when the woman had an illusion semblance wasn't a good idea.

On another note, she would finally get to meet Neo. The ice cream woman was one of her favorite people. She just hoped that fighting her went better for her than it had for Yang. That being said, she wasn't going to go looking for the woman. Given how dangerous their destination was, she wasn't going to risk her teammates just to sate her curiosity.

She opened her eyes slowly once Oobleck stated that they arrived. Looking down at the ruined streets she felt a rush of sympathy for those that lost their lives when the grimm invaded. She hoped they hadn't suffered, but they were in a far better place now than when they were alive. Death might be terrifying to normal people, but it was a mercy compared to the fear of grimm and the feeling of their claws. Reaching up to touch the feather in her hair, she wondered if her father would agree with her.

Chancing a glance at Jaune who went pale when he learned they were jumping, she bit back her laughter. She hoped that her teammate would never change; he was perfect the way he was. Without hesitation, she walked to the open doorway before falling backward out of it with a cocky smirk. Feeling the wind rush through her hair she allowed the wild laugh to leave her lips. This was honestly the best part of the mission.

Activating the dust in her jacket Ruby floated to the ground gently as her teammates, followed her actions. Flipping to land on her feet she scanned the area with her eyes. Seeing the pack of beowolves she quickly turned to look at Oobleck and the others who'd gotten to the ground; she completely ignored Jaune's scolding glare. He would most likely lecture her on recklessness later, but she was never in any real danger.

"Doctor, there's a pack of beowolves incoming," she said unfolding Crescent Rose. He looked up at the charging grimm without acknowledging the disappointment in her tone. Smirking he considered taking them out himself; a pack of beowolves was hardly a threat or a challenge. Looking at the battle-ready student he decided not to just in case a bigger threat showed up.

"Show me what your team can do," he ordered stepping back to give them room. Ruby nodded, her eyes landed on the alpha, as she tightened her grip on her weapon. It would be the strongest in the pack and the one who would cause the most trouble, not that she minded.

"Jaune, your support. Pyrrha stay with Jaune but take out any grimm that get past us, and Blake you're with me," she stated before attacking. They would follow her orders, so she didn't need to wait around. She charged straight for the alpha in a flurry of petals.

This of course caused her dart right into the middle of the pack that was all too happy to receive her with their claws. Spinning on her heel, she pulled the trigger on her scythe and swung it through the air around her. The satisfying feeling of her blade tearing through the grimm was enough to make her smirk, even as the alpha jumped away to avoid her attack.

Pouting slightly, she saw a blur of black as Blake covered her back taking out any grimm who got to close. Her dual blades proved how sharp they were as she diced though the grimm. The exasperated glare she sent at her leader was lost as Ruby charged at the alpha with single minded determination.

Shifting her weapon into rifle form Pyrrha took out the grimm that when they made it past the two girls. While they'd sparred before, Ruby was acting much more fierce than usual. She supposed it was due to the fact the grimm wasn't human giving the reaper a chance to let loose without fear of hurting one of them. It was just another reminder that Ruby wasn't a normal fifteen-year-old.

Blocking the alpha's claws with the shaft of her scythe, Ruby stabbed another with the bladed pummel in the same action. The wicked smirk on her face seemed to enrage the grimm that snarled back at her before swiping at her face with its other arm. Dropping back into a flip, she kicked it in the face as she put distance between them. Feeling Blake press her back against her own, Ruby glanced around and frowned for a moment at the surrounding grimm.

Seeing they were becoming surrounded Ruby ordered Blake to duck as she winked in the alpha's direction. The instant the cat faunus dropped to the ground Ruby pressed a button on her scythe activating its most deadly form. As her blade curled back the scythe became a glaive; it was more useful for fighting against multiple enemies. Holding the weapon tightly she spun at the same time she activated her semblance.

In the midst of a crimson tornado, Blake stared at her leader in shock as both petals and the deadly weapon tore the grimm to pieces. The grimm fell back as Ruby came to a stop panting and rested the weapon on her shoulders. The cocky expression was still on her face. It took a lot more strength to use the third form of her weapon than it did the other two since she couldn't use the recoil to swing it around.

The alpha backed up having managed to avoid the blow. The anger that radiated from the beast was more amusing to the reaper than anything else even as she tensed in preparation for an attack. It growled before launching itself at the girl hoping to get vengeance for its pack. Moving Blake stopped the beast from touching her leader by blocking the swing with her cleaver, then she buried her katana in the grimm's chest.

Watching the beast fade into black smoke, Ruby kept her attention on their surrounding until it became obvious no other grimm were going to attack. Hearing her other two teammates approach, she relaxed slowly. Turning to her teammates, she glanced at Oobleck who nodded at her.

"You didn't tell us it could do that," Jaune said poking Crescent Rose. Ruby frowned before giving him a playful smirk.

"This isn't something I like to use a lot because it's slightly uncontrollable," she said refolding her weapon into its travel form. Holstering it on her back, she shrugged before saying, "dad couldn't train me to use this one so I had to learn on my own."

"Oh, so how many forms does it have," Pyrrha asked. It honestly wouldn't shock her if the young leader managed to fit an assault rifle attachment to her weapon. Ruby was amazing with designing weapons and she wondered if Thorn had an ulterior form as well.

"Just three," Ruby said. The amused smirk she offered her partner told the older girl that she knew all too well what the redhead was thinking. Looking over at Oobleck she asked, "where to next?"

It didn't take long for them to realize Mt. Glenn was a haven to grimm, not that Ruby expected anything else. There were so many grimm that it was surprising that humans even lived in the town at one point. It was no shock that Vale had been unable to protect the town. Even clearing a small area so they could make camp was dangerous. While Oobleck questioned her teammates on their motivations Ruby jumped to the top of one of the crumbling buildings. Sitting back, she thought about Roman who waited just under her feet.

Hearing footsteps, she glanced up at her teacher who stared down at her with concern. She supposed he'd noticed her far too aggressive actions and mild distraction. Turning her attention back to the ruined city, she tried to pretend that she wasn't worried about the future. It helped no one when she allowed her thoughts and emotions to cloud her actions.

"Are you alright Miss Rose," Oobleck questioned looking down at the girl. He was worried about her.

"I'm fine just getting a vantage point," she lied seeing no reason to trouble him with her problems. Throwing a smirk in his direction she hoped that he would simply let it go. He frowned but covered it quickly, she would talk when she got ready.

"Your team has found a place to settle for the night. Join us when you can," he told her before jumping down from the roof.

Laying back she looked up at the stars and the night sky stared back at her without any answers. Just like at Beacon the night sky shined brightly here but unlike beacon this wasn't a safe place for her to rest. She wasn't afraid of the grimm around them, the White Fang would put up a better fight than the grimm. The stars had never been this bright in her last life.

Thinking about her life as Alice she could remember the first time, she'd seen stars like this. It was the day she ran away from home and had to sleep outside. Even then she hadn't been comfortable in her own skin. Now however she knew this was where and who she was supposed to be. She was no longer the scared little girl waiting for someone to come and save her.

If she wanted Roman on her side, then she would get him on her side. There was no other course of action for either of them to take. He was going to be on her side, or he was going to be out of the game entirely. That was the only way any of this was going to end. She was far too greedy to allow him to stay Cinder's pet thief. He'd been hers since the moment they met, he just didn't know it yet.

Hearing footsteps she looked up, she found golden eyes staring down at her with curiosity. Smirking up at her teammate, Ruby patted the spot beside her. Rolling her eyes, the faunus sat down beside her leader as she watched the girl closely. Her leader had been aggressive today; more so than usual. It was worrying, and she didn't trust Ruby to come to them about her issues.

"Ruby why do you fight," Blake asked deciding to start the conversation with a safe topic. Blake was confused about how she could save the White Fang from themselves or how she could stop Adam from starting another faunus war. How could she bring them out of the darkness they'd surrendered to when she didn't even know if she could forget how that darkness felt?

"Because there are things in this world I can't let live," Ruby stated her voice cold. Her last knowledge of the original timeline was Salem; she was willing to bet the woman was a threat. She also had a feeling that the woman was part of the reason for Summer's death. The memory of the first mother to care about her was enough of a reason to search for the truth.

"What if those things weren't a threat," Blake asked. She didn't doubt that her leader could accomplish any goal she set her mind to, but she also knew Ruby was young. Hugging her knees to her chest she asked, "would you still fight?"

Ruby frowned as she thought over the question. If all her enemies vanished, she had no idea what she would do. The idea of living a quiet life didn't appeal to her at all. She finally had the power to fight for her own goals and she loved it. In some ways fighting itself was enough of an appeal. The adrenaline that rushed through her veins was addicting. She wanted to fight. Did that make her a warrior or nothing more than an animal?

"The white fang is a threat to you," Ruby said in order to turn the conversation away from her. She didn't know who she was without an enemy to fight or a goal to follow and she never wanted to find out. Blinking at her kitten she said, "and you are my teammate. I will fight your battles because I know you'll do the same."

"That doesn't answer my question," Blake said knowing what the girl was trying to do.

Sitting up slowly, Ruby reached up to touch the feather in her hair before smirking at her teammate. If Blake wanted to know the truth, then she would tell her exactly that. Meeting the other girl's golden eyes, she said, "in truth, I don't care about the world. I would gladly let everything burn to dust to protect the people I love. Does that answer your question kitty cat?"

Blake watched her leader closely as the girl stood; she could tell Ruby meant what she said. Letting the world burn if those she loved were safe, wasn't a noble trait. It also contradicted what she'd learned of her leader so far while also confirming everything she'd ever seen in her. Ruby was kind and happy, however, she seemed willing to ignore the world if they were safe.

It was confusing and she couldn't see why the girl had decided to become a huntress when she had no real desire to save innocents. There was also a feeling that the only reason Ruby went against the White Fang was that Blake wanted to save the faunus. Ruby would fight for her, but she didn't really care about faunus rights. The thought should make her angry, but it didn't.

Standing she nodded to say she understood. What she didn't understand was why Ruby had a habit of backflipping off high places. Rolling her eyes at the girl's actions, she stepped off the roof with a small smirk. It was true that her leader reminded her of Adam but there was something calming about Ruby's brand of insanity.

Leading Ruby back to the others Blake froze when the ground beneath her feet began to crumble. Feeling a rush of panic, she twisted to meet her leader's own panicked gaze. Fear kept her from doing anything more than opening her mouth in a strangled scream. Seeing Ruby's silver eyes harden she reached a trembling hand for the other girl although she knew it would never reach.

"Blake!"

The scream echoed in the air around them as Ruby the girl out of the way. Petals drifted to the ground as evidence of her semblance just as the ground beneath her feet finally gave out. Channeling aura into her jacket she managed to stay up long enough to stab her scythe into the ground to keep herself from falling. For one brief moment, she felt relief that she hadn't hesitated. Blake was safe; she'd been fast enough.

Cursing herself for using the jacket and not giving it enough time to recharge she winced as her hands slipped own the shaft of her weapon to rest on the bladed pummel. Hissing she didn't even think of letting go as the metal cut into her hand. Hearing Blake call her name, she looked up meeting her teammate's fear-filled golden eyes. Looking past the girl's offered hand she noticed the soulless red eyes of a grimm and felt protective panic.

"Behind you," she snapped barely feeling it when blood dripped down her wrist. She wasn't important her teammate was. Feeling her grip begin to fade as Blake spun around to face the grimm, she was relieved to see the girl dodge.

In the instant her teammate left her sight, she felt her grip give out. For a second, she felt weightless as she fell into the darkness below. Closing her eyes she tried to relax her body then she landed with her head hitting the ground hard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay finally got to Mt. Glen. Anyway, the next chapter is the talk between Ruby and Roman. So your thoughts on the chapter?
> 
> Stay safe and have a good day
> 
> \- Shyla


	25. Embaressment

Roman stared at the unconscious girl in his bed feeling wholly unprepared to deal with this situation. When the men from the white fang had found her in one of the outer tunnels, he hadn't known what to do. Now she was resting in his bed on the sheets he'd just cleaned, and Neo was giggling at his expression while he sat in a chair beside his bed. It was safe to say that he'd never been in this situation before. It didn't help that Neo was far too amused to help him. Cinder had told him that there could be no interruptions in the plan, he wondered if she would consider a tiny huntress an interruption.

"Well what was I supposed to do leave her to die," he snapped through his voice lacked any real bite. He wasn't actually angry just very confused and slightly panicked. Neo blinked at him before frowning and pointing to the bed. His eye twitched as he said, "yes I know she's in our bed, and no I'm not happy about it either."

Shaking her head, the woman walked over and lifted up one of the girl's hands and showed him what she'd seen. Taking off the girl's glove she showed him a jagged cut covered in dried blood. The injury wasn't very serious, but it was fresh and could get infected. They both knew just how horrible infected wounds could get. Sighing he obeyed her silent command and moved off to find the first aid kid.

Taking a moment to look down at the huntress, Neo sat down on the bed gently. While the girl was just a bit shorter than her, she knew the girl was far younger. Despite her eternally young face, which she was very proud of, the multicolored woman was in her early twenties. According to the files they'd gotten from Cinder, this girl was only fifteen. Tightening her grip on the girl's wrist, Neo couldn't keep herself from scowling at the idea of a child being sent to Mt. Glen. The grimm alone was enough to give seasoned huntsmen a problem with their sheer numbers. Add in the White Fang and it was a death trap.

Hearing Roman return, she held out her hand and was pleased when he obeyed her order instantly. He handed her the first aid kit soundlessly, before moving to sit back down. Glancing at the kid, he wondered how long they had until her team found them. Remembering the last encounter, he had with them he felt mildly sure in saying they wouldn't appreciate the kid's current situation.

Unaware of her partner's thoughts, Neo cleaned the wound carefully having more than enough experience in getting rid of the blood. Once the blood was gone, she rubbed a healing salve over the wound before gently wrapping it in bandages. The wound wasn't bad enough that the kid would need stitches, but it would scar. Roman watched her do the same with the girl's other hand with a fond expression on his face, he'd already lost count of how many times Neo had treated his own injuries.

"Cinder will want her dead," he said sounding more annoyed with himself than anything else.

The words caused his partner to freeze and he hated himself for saying anything. Maybe Cinder had grown fond of the girl or simply didn't want to kill a student. Neither of them had a way of knowing what Cinder would want in this exact moment, all they could do was follow the orders she'd left them and hope they were doing the right thing.

They both hated killing, Neo especially. In another life, he was sure that the woman would have become a doctor rather than an assassin. Threatening and maiming were fine, and they would kill if they had to but neither one liked it. Their days of killing without mercy were gone and he wanted to keep them behind them. Every action had a cost; they'd already paid the price for the blood on their hands. In specific Neo had paid for them both.

When she looked up, he wasn't surprised to see her eyes turn a fearful white. It was also hard to entertain the idea of killing Ruby because of what she was. If this was a full-fledged huntress then he had wouldn't hesitate, however, Ruby was a kid. There was a reason he'd always pulled his punches when they fought. She was fifteen, killing her wasn't something he could just write off and ignore.

"Neo I can't kill a kid, at least not like this."

Not after all they'd lost to get to this point, not when they would never have a child of their own, and not when every scar she kept hidden was his fault in the first place. He couldn't add more red to their ledger just to appease a woman that they both despised. Most of all for all her annoying traits, Ruby didn't deserve to die here in some cave. He liked the little red brat even if it was against his better judgment.

As she finished bandaging Ruby's hand Neo shifted so she could reach out and touch his face. If Ruby needed to die, then she could be the one to kill the girl; he didn't need to tear himself up over something like this. When he looked up and saw the pained smile on her face, he immediately knew what she was offering. Just like always, she was trying to protect him from the world.

"I can't ask you to do that, not again," he whispered leaning forward and resting his head on her shoulder. Why was it that one little brat was bringing all their baggage right to the forefront? There was so much wrong with this situation that he would rather the White Fang had never found the little girl in the first place. At least then they wouldn't be in this situation.

Neo wrapped her arms around him and wished they could go back to the days before they met Cinder; before Roman was forced to work for her. Being a criminal was so much easier than being a pawn in a game of chess. She knew that eventually they would become useless to the woman and be disposed of. This was nothing but a way to delay the inevitable, and she hated it. Running her fingers through his hair she gave him what little comfort she could without being able to speak. It was times like this where she longed to have a voice.

"You'll hate me," he whispered feeling defeated.

Cinder wanted this plan to go off without complications, but for once he wanted the witch here to do her own dirty work. Ruby wasn't part of the plan and if he didn't kill her now then Cinder might turn her anger on Neo. It hurt to admit but Neo was far more important to him than the kid. He might've become fond of the little huntress during their battles, but that was nothing compared to the pain brought by the idea of Cinder hurting Neo.

Hugging him closer she shook her head wanting so badly to tell him that she could never hate him. They went through hell together; nothing would make her abandon him. He was her everything. She'd follow him to the ends of the earth without hesitation and despite her reservations, she would kill anyone he asked her to.

Hearing Ruby groan and start to wake up he pulled away from Neo; they both knew the time for thinking was over with. Hardening his heart, he looked at his lover, "you should leave."

Neo frowned and shook her head. She didn't want to leave him or let him kill Ruby, but she knew she couldn't stop him. That said, she wasn't about to allow him to do this on his own. Backing away she made no move to stop him as he picked up his cane. The final torn look he threw in her direction was met by a determined glare causing him to slump in defeat.

Standing over the little reaper he aimed down at the girl, before lashing out. Swinging back, he hit the chair he'd just been sitting in and sent it flying across the train car. He couldn't do it. Growling he threw his weapon away and stumbled back. Why couldn't he do it? All he had to do to protect Neo was kill one little girl. Cursing himself he leaned against the wall before sinking down.

Ruby's eyes snapped open at the loud sound and she shot up putting pressure on her hands which turned out to be a bad idea. Hissing in pain she pressed her wounded palms to her chest as she searched the room around her. Spotting Roman, she frowned at the expression of utter defeat on his face. While this might not be the way she'd planned on meeting him she was a little relieved to have found him. Turning her attention to her hands since Roman was no threat at the moment he didn't even raise his head when she sat up. She was shocked at the sight of bandages on her hands. Apparently, they'd taken the time to clean and dress her wounds. Clenching her hand, she flinched at the pain but pressed it to the back of her mind. The pain was tolerable, even with low aura and wounded hands she could put up a decent fight. Looking back at Roman she noticed something very important.

Wait… she was in a room, alone with Roman Torchwick on a bed. This was apparently all her hormones needed to know in order to make her face heat up. Resisting the urge to hide her now blushing face, because seriously, she tried to focus on her self-appointed mission. All she had to do was convince him to become hers. By that, she meant to join her side, not anything else. She just had to remember not to say anything completely stupid or insensitive and she would be fine.

"This is not how I imagined waking up in your bed."

Well fuck. There went her plan. Forgetting the fact, she had cut open her hands she let her face crash down onto her palms. The pain from her action didn't even register. It was nice that she chose this moment to be a hormonal teenager; note the sarcasm. Why? Like seriously did she have a brain malfunction the second she opened her mouth. That wasn't anything close to what she wanted to say.

The strangled laugh that broke through his lips didn't help her do anything more than sink further into her jacket. Whining slighting from the embarrassment she considered committing suicide to get away from this situation. She was such an idiot. She just knew that Anubis was laughing at her right now. Hearing footsteps she glanced up just as he sat down on the bed beside her. Quickly hiding her face back in her hands, she felt like bashing her head against the wall of the train car. She should probably apologize.

"So, h-"

"I am so sorry," she mumbled cutting him off before he could talk. She honestly hadn't meant to. It was great to know that she could prepare over fifty different plans for talking to her faunus teammate about the White Fang but not for talking to Roman.

"Really kid? I can't tell if you're apologizing for a vaguely hidden proposition or for being in my bed in the first place," he teased sounding more than a little sarcastic. Sinking further into her hands Ruby wondered if she could hide under the bed to get away from her own idiocy. Deciding that hiding would not make it go away, she straightened.

"Can we just forget everything since I woke up," she asked forcing her voice to stay steady despite how nervous she was. Maybe if she pretended that she wasn't blushing then it would go away. It was doubtful but she could try.

"Sure kid," he said. He was feeling just a little bit better after her act of embarrassing herself. Glancing to where Neo had hidden in the shadows, he wasn't surprised to see her shoulders shaking with silent laughter. She wasn't going to be of any help to him.

"Now how'd you find this place red?"

Thank god. He was going on a normal topic. She could work with being threatened. Yep starting the whole conversation about how she'd found the base; that she actually hadn't found, was a good idea. This was a topic she could talk about without making herself look like a hormonal teenager. It was a step above embarrassing herself.

"My team and I were assigned to cull the number of grimm in this area. I fell through the ground and landed in the tunnels beneath," she said watching him closely. She wasn't surprised to see him nod slowly.

"So, you weren't actively looking for the White Fang," he asked.

"Nope, that was in no way part of our official orders," she said before tilting her head. It was strange to realize that this was the first time they'd actually had a conversation with each other. And she was telling a half-truth. Pushing the guilt to the back of her mind she ignored it completely. There was a time and place for her guilt and now was not it.

"And your unofficial orders?"

The question brought a bitter smile to her face as confirmation of his thoughts. Unofficially they were here to scout for the White Fang and report their findings to Ozpin. The man was smart enough to realize that and all traces of playfulness faded from his face. A team of huntsmen even students, was more than enough to cause trouble. The operation was in danger and Cinder was not going to be happy.

Shifting nervously, Ruby flickered her eyes up to meet his own before sighing and letting her hands drop into her lap. Yep, she was screwed. At least he hadn't killed her yet. She wasn't sure that she would have been as merciful in his position. Her team was most likely already on their way and with Zwei, it wouldn't take them long to find her. She'd most likely not get another chance to talk to him; to convince him to join her. This was the best chance she would get.

"Roman can I ask you a question," she asked as Neo moved out from her corner. Taking a chance to stare at the woman, she knew that the multicolored woman had been there the entire time. She also knew that she'd heard her disastrous comment earlier. That was great.

Seeing the man wave his hand in approval, she watched Neo pull something shiny from off the crate beside the door and frowned. Was that her dagger? Patting the sheath on her thigh confirmed that it was and pouted for a second. She should have expected that they would disarm her, anything else was just foolish. Raising an eyebrow as the woman winked at her, Ruby felt the returning urge to sink into the floor.

"Why are you doing this," Ruby asked once she'd pushed away her embarrassment. She wasn't referring to working for Cinder or with the white fang. She wanted to know why she woke up in a warm bed and not chained to the cold metal floor of the train. It would have been easier for them, unless of course there was a short supply of chains.

"Survival red," he said. Meeting his eyes, she frowned before shaking her head. In canon he'd claimed that there was too much for him to lose by defying Cinder, but that wasn't what she cared about right now. Trying to keep her face neutral, Ruby held up her hand.

"Why am I bandaged up and not chained to the floor," she clarified.

There was blood staining the bandages on from when she'd panicked earlier but it was nothing serious. In a few hours she would have enough aura to start healing her hands. Neo twitched at the question before looking at Roman and seeing the stiffness in his shoulders she knew he was affected by it too. Neither of them liked chains very much; they liked the idea of used them on a child even less.

"Because I don't believe in chaining kids to the floor," he stated trying to keep his voice calm; the very idea was revolting to him. Neo hated seeing him like this but the masks they wore kept them both safe.

"And I'm not dead because you're not a killer," Ruby said standing she forced the fear from her voice and face.

Flickering her gaze between the two, she decided to abandon all reservations and began to pace. Watching her closely, Roman noticed the way her fingers kept twitching in pain, but she didn't acknowledge it. He could see that she was no stranger to pain; the thought bothered him more than it should have. Neo internally praised the girl for her courage. How many would be this brave in front of the top criminals in Vale? When she was Ruby's age, she most likely would have panicked the second she saw them and tried to run away. Feeling her lips tilt into a smirk she decided that she liked this girl. Ruby had more fire than most hunters she'd come across.

"You didn't kill Blake at the docks, and even though you tried to kill me with a crystal when we met you gave me ample time to dodge," she stated as he stared at her.

Roman's lips curved up into a sadistic smile as he asked, "and how do you know I won't kill you now?"

Ruby faltered at his question and her eyes flickered over to Neo. Either of them could kill her before she could blink with the condition, she was in. At the moment even the White Fang thugs outside might've been able to kill her easily. Crossing her arms, she winced a bit as the action sent a rush of pain through her palms. Right she should probably remember that she was injured.

"I don't know, maybe it's because it would have been easier for you to kill me in my sleep," she said bluntly.

"I could have waited so that I could torture you for answers," he said coldly. Watching him stand she wondered if it would be a good idea to put distance between them as he clenched his cane tightly. Instead of doing anything even remotely sane, she raised an eyebrow as a silent challenge.

"Unless you want to hear my plans for world domination, I really don't have any other information for you," she said. Honestly, this was another of those things that she'd said without meaning to but at least he looked intrigued rather than annoyed. Maybe she needed to get a filter for her mouth.

Before he could open his mouth and question her because he was willing to be the kid was being completely serious, an explosion sent them all to their knees. Crashing down hard, Ruby glanced between Roman and the open door before deciding that her team was more important than their conversation. Knowing that she wasn't going to get her dagger back from Neo, she chose to cut her losses and rush out the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that was a thing. Anyway, next chapter is part 1 of the breach. So what did you guys think about the chapter?


	26. Blood Red

Ruby darted past the confused white fang faunus her head pounding with every single step. Even without her semblance, she was fast enough that the only thing most saw was a blur. That didn't stop them from shooting at her not that she was shocked they would shoot at an unarmed fifteen-year-old. Terrorists were hardly known for having strict morals.

A gunshot rang out and she stumbled. Wow, after about two hundred shots one had actually managed to hit her. They were really doing amazing at their job; she could almost feel the morale go up as someone cheered behind her. Still, she couldn't praise their efforts too much since the bullet had only grazed her arm and nothing else. Gripping her arm to stop the blood she spotted the open door of the train car.

Grabbing what aura, she had left in an iron fist she tugged and activated her semblance. Rose petals fell to the ground as she shot forward straight out the open door. Landing roughly on the ground she cried out as her bleeding hands took most of the impact. Hearing thundering footsteps, she lashed out with her foot kicking at the faunus approaching her from behind. The feeling of her foot impacting someone's ankle was immensely satisfying the thud as he landed on the ground was even better. Rolling, she slammed her heel down on the terrorist's shoulder causing him to cry out and drop his gun.

Grabbing the weapon before his comrades could realize what was happening, she lunged upward aiming for the terrorists surround her only to freeze at the number of guns aimed in her direction. Even if she did manage to shoot one of them the others would react before she could escape. Without her aura, a single shot could be fatal, and she doubted that even the White Fang would manage to miss at this distance. The dark metal of their guns pointed at her face was terrifying, but she didn't close her eyes. If she was going to die, then she wouldn't close her eyes and look away. She hadn't turned away from death as Alice and this life would be no different.

Spotting a black blur rush past the White Fang members she felt something wet splattered across her face. Almost on instinct, she reached up to touch the liquid on her face before pulling away her hand. Part of her had known it was blood well before she saw the red staining her hand. Watching the faunus closest to her drop to the ground with a curtain of red flowing from his throat. She barely had a moment to register that the man was actually dead before Blake was standing in front of her.

Even with her back turned Ruby could see the rage her teammate seemed to radiate. The dagger she'd given the older girl was clenched in her hand with a thin line of blood dripping down the blade. Her kitten had just killed someone. She didn't know if she should be proud or worried. The girl's movement had been flawless, did that mean her teammate had killed before? Either way, she would have to talk to Blake later to make sure that the faunus was alright.

Blake's golden eyes were cold as she shook the blood off her dagger. Turning toward the other White Fang members, she almost snarled at them. How dare they try and kill her leader. The urge to carve them into tiny pieces was almost overwhelming but she held herself back. Despite their mistake of attacking Ruby, they were still her people. Slaughtering them in cold blood wasn't what she wanted. The wary expressions of the faunus around her meant that they knew who she was. Some of them must have remembered her from when she'd been Adam's partner and those that didn't have just seen her murder one of their own.

"Stay away from her," Blake ordered. Chancing a glance at her leader she tightened her grip on her dagger when she saw the blood on Ruby's arm.

Roman watched from the doorway of the train impressed with how easily the girl was able to control the faunus but he was slightly worried at how simple it had been for her to kill. Then he realized that this must be the White Fang traitor that Adam had told him about. Glancing toward the faunus he hid his anger behind a cruel smirk; he'd given no orders for them to try killing Ruby. Snapping his fingers, he gained their attention and motioned for them to back away from the girls.

When the faunus all stepped back at once Blake rushed to the girl's side. She didn't worry about how their other teammates would react or about how she'd just took a life. In the White Fang, she'd killed people before, but they'd never been a faunus life. Kneeling beside her leader, she hesitantly reached out to touch the wound on the younger girl's arm.

"Well kitty cat, it seems Adam wants you back for more reasons than your sparkling personality," Roman said stepping out of the train. He kept his tone light and mocking even as Neo looked over at the reaper worriedly.

"Did you do this," Blake asked. She sneered at the man in anger, as he gave a taunting smirk.

Roman didn't get a chance to answer because their teammates finished knocking out the White Fang members they were fighting. Glancing at the teens now charging to their leader's side, he raised an eyebrow when the blonde boy froze. Oobleck frowned at the dead body but didn't stop to think about it; his student was wounded. Pyrrha tugged on Jaune's sleeve as he stared horrified at the dead body while disguising her own horror at the situation. Zwei whined nuzzling Ruby's hand as he smelled the blood causing her to sigh. Reaching out she petted the dog on the head trying to reassure him she was okay.

"Jaune! Ruby's hurt snap out of it," Pyrrha pleaded as she looked away from the dead body. Slowly his head turned to look at Ruby, Jaune startled at the blood running down her arm. Oobleck stood in front of his students ready to fight as Jaune kneeled beside his leader. Pushing back his dizziness at the sight of blood he pushed his aura out toward the younger girl.

"A healer," Roman muttered watching as the girls wound closed. It'd been years since he'd seen such a rare semblance. Remembering the pain, he'd gone through over the last few years he frowned if only he'd had that boys ability years ago. Looking at the still seething cat faunus he smirked. Now that he was sure the girl would live; he could mock the kitty all he wanted to. With a grin, he said, "for your information kitty, I gave no order to hurt little red."

Ruby smirked as her wounds healed. Clenching her hands, she grinned when she didn't feel a bit of pain signaling that the wounds were closed. Pushing herself up to her feet, she gave a small nod toward her blonde teammate. The boy looked toward the ground as Ruby laid a hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you."

Hiding her frown, Pyrrha handed Ruby Crescent Rose and watched as her leader walked forward. She might not want to kill Roman, but they did need to move this situation along. Moving faster than most eyes could follow Ruby appeared in front of Roman the bladed pummel of Crescent Rose's shaft pointed at his neck. His eyes widened for just an instant before a pick boot was rushing toward Ruby's face causing her to flip back.

Landing easily Ruby glanced toward her teammates for a second as Oobleck took a protective stance in front of his students. The glare on his face didn't change even as Roman met the expression. Tilting his head back, the doctor tightened his grip on his thermos. With a smirk Roman laid a hand on Neo's shoulder.

"All forces attack," he ordered looking away from the other man. Stepping onto the train, Neo vanished in a shower of broken glass.

Obeying the order, the faunus ran for the group of five. Roman took one last look into silver eyes before following Neo; he had a job to do. As he stepped on board, Ruby chuckled. With her aura returned, it would far easier to fend off the White Fang then when they were shooting at her. Still, she motioned for her teammates to deal with the faunus as she checked her aura levels, apparently, Jaune had returned at least half her aura. Staying beside Oobleck she noticed the worried expression on his face and sent him an arrogant smirk.

"I'm fine," she said hoping to ease his worries. From the way his brow furrowed, she hadn't succeeded. Then again, he was a veteran huntsman, he wouldn't fall for her manipulations as easily as her own team would.

"I very much doubt that is the case Miss Rose," he said eyeing the drying blood on her arm. Scoffing at his tone she rolled her eyes before turning toward her teammates as they finished off the attacking faunus.

Glancing toward the train, she frowned slightly before clicking her tongue. She doubted they would be able to stop the breach; it was after all a major event. That did not mean she was about to let it go off without a hitch, besides once the bombs blew open the ceiling, they would get cut off by the grimm. Their only real option for survival was to go after the train.

"We have to stop the train," Ruby said ignoring the uncertainty she saw on Blake's face.

She knew the faunus was worried about her reaction to the murder but right now it didn't matter. They could talk when it was safe; besides she didn't have an issue with murder. If Blake hadn't attacked, then she would have dealt with the White Fang herself. Turning her attention away from Blake she realized that her partner and puppy might have an issue with killing. Taking a moment to look at them she found horror hidden in Jaune's gaze.

Feeling sick, she turned away from the blonde in favor of lunging toward the train. Kicking off the ground, she activated her semblance in order to gain speed. Hearing Blake curse she smirked and landed on the roof of the train at the same time Oobleck and her team moved to follow. Moving to the roof hatch she opened it slowly. Looking down she felt a momentary rush of panic at the sight of the bomb, but she pushed it away easily. Noticing Blake look over her shoulder, she sighed.

"We have an issue," Blake said upon seeing the bomb.

Ruby watched as they all leaped to another car at Oobleck's instruction, before going last. Watching her teammates for any sign of injury, she was relieved to see that they were unharmed. Jumping to the next car, she followed her teammates until the White Fang mounted a counterattack. Seeing the army of at least one hundred walking toward them Ruby launched herself forward with the recoil. Spinning like a dancer the scythe wielder took out some of the grunts knocking them off the train without hesitation.

The fact they would die once they hit the ground and once the grimm got to them didn't bother her. She looked up to find her team taking out the others; it was likely Jaune hadn't figured it out yet. Hearing an explosion, she twitched as the ceiling exploded causing grimm to fall into the tunnel. Exchanging a glance with Oobleck who knew far too well what the grimm would do the faunus they'd defeated. Sheathing her weapon, she turned to her teammates.

"You need to go below and stop the train," Oobleck said before shooting more fireballs at the paladins coming in their direction. While he might not be the same man, he used to be he was still a huntsman. These White Fang weaklings were nothing but an inconvenience. Tightening his grip on his weapon he bent down and opened the hatch and the four students dropped down into the train. When he closed the hatch and found the dog still there, he smiled. Maybe he should invest in a dog.

Landing easily, Ruby stiffened before smirking slightly. All she had to do was keep a smirk on her face and ignore her doubts. The breach, then the fall of Beacon. Straightening, she laid a hand on her weapon. It should be Neo that came to greet them first, although she had no desire to fight the woman.

"Are we really not going to talk," Jaune asked his voice sounding serious for once. Blake flinched waiting for the accusations that would come, but Ruby interfered.

"No. We can talk when it's safe," Ruby ordered stepping in front of the faunus. They didn't have time to worry about personal ethics; not when they could all die. Blue eyes hardened with annoyance, but he nodded in agreement anyway. Pyrrha looked down but said nothing she didn't want to pick a side in this. Ignoring how uncomfortable the current dynamic of her team made her feel, Ruby said, "let's go."

Watching the show, Neo hummed silently in amusement. Their enemies were obviously still just little kids. The reaper did show promise however, she couldn't wait until she got the chance to see what Ruby would become. Deciding to play around with the kids, she stepped off one of the high crates in the train car and landed in front of them. She smiled politely just enough to be mocking before bowing to the teens.

"Pyrrha, Jaune, you're up," Ruby ordered. Without much hesitation, she smirked as she walked past Neo. Winking at the multi-colored woman she broke into a run. Rushing from the train car, she didn't look back.

Watching the teen run off, Neo barely had to look to block the attack from the redhead. Now, this was interesting, the Mistral prize fighter would be fun to fight. She just hoped the girl would fight better than just some textbook attacks. Tournament fighters were always so by the book and boring. She'd always hated fighting them.

Blake frowned and went to follow her leader only for Jaune to grab her arm. For a moment she thought the boy might begin to snap at her again, but instead, his eyes softened. Feeling his grip on her arm loosen, she relaxed as her worry started to melt away. He might be angry with her actions, but he was still her partner.

"Be safe," he said softly. They could talk later; he did have a lot to say about her choices. Nodding she ran after Ruby leaving her teammates to deal with the small woman. Letting her pass, Neo smirked before kicking Pyrrha in the face. Jaune growled at the attack on his girlfriend and charged the short woman.

With a smirk, Ruby deflected the giant man's chainsaw with Crescent Rose. He might be an upper-level White Fang, but he still couldn't keep up with her speed. Feeling a hand land on her shoulder, she tightened her grip on her scythe as Blake vaulted over her shoulder. Kicking the man in the face, the faunus landed behind him as Ruby laughed. He stumbled back and retaliated on instinct as his face twisted in rage. Vanishing in a burst of petals, Ruby reappeared between the two of them as she stabbed the pummel of her scythe into the floor.

Her smirk was finally gone as she blocked the slash while he stared in shock at Adam's lost partner. Stumbling back, he praised whatever deity he could think of that the girl had stopped him, Adam would kill him if Blake even got a scratch. Paling at the hardened glow in the redhead's eyes, he flinched.

"Go, I'll deal with him," Ruby ordered. If he wanted a fight, then she would deal with him. She didn't need Blake here to help her defeat a weak little warrior.

Nodding Blake rushed to go try and stop Roman. Holding his chainsaw, the man charged the girl who frowned. Blocking and dodging around him she swept his feet out from under him with the blade of her scythe before hitting him in the back with the shaft. She hated it when people endangered what she considered hers. Blake belonged to her, along with Jaune and Pyrrha. None of them would come to harm while she was alive. Dancing away she rested the weapon on her shoulders and waited for him to stand.

Watching him get up to charge at her again, she rolled her eyes. Some people simply didn't learn. Dodging his attacks, she sent him crashing into the wall of the train car. With a strike from the blunt side of her scythe. Shifting her grip on her weapon as he stood, she rolled her eyes.

"Adam won't be happy when he learns of you," the giant warned tightening his grip on his weapon. Almost growling at her he snapped, "ordering around his partner is a mistake."

Frowning, she twisted on her heel before lashing out with her scythe to carve a long opening in the wall of the train. Seeing the panicked expression that overtook his face she took a step in his direction only to burst into petals. Spinning around the man wildly searched the area for the girl. The issue was that he was too slow to do anything once he found her. Well not before she buried the sharpened pummel of her scythe in his chest. It was a small wound with less chance of being identified as an attack from her rather than the grimm.

Choking, he crumbled to his knees a single hand coming up to grab her wrist with a weak grip. Humming softly as she kicked away his chainsaw she couldn't help the anger that infused the sound. Jaune would be so disappointed with her; that was the only thing she could think for a moment. After all, here was his team leader burying a piece of sharp metal in a man's chest. Then she remembered that her puppy wasn't here to see this; what he didn't know couldn't hurt him. Looking into his wide shocked eyes with an emotionless gaze she raised a foot and kicked him away.

Looking down at the blood coating her weapon, she sighed before walking over to the man. He was still trying to reach for his weapon as if it would save him. Honestly, the entire thing was pathetic. Spinning her scythe to shake the blood off, she holstered the weapon before reaching out to grab the back of his shirt. Dragging him toward the opening she'd created, she ignored the desperate cry he let out. If she left him alone then he would die on his own, but if she threw him out of the train there was less chance of her puppy finding out.

"I really hate it when people try to hurt what belongs to me."

Letting him go, she kicked him out of the train without hesitation. It was odd to say but she didn't feel anything having killed someone. Turning away she walked toward the door to the next car. She barely had a chance to open the door before the train rammed into the end of the tracks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, that happened. I just had Ruby kill a guy, not sure how I feel about that but I'm not taking it back. Anyway, the next chapter is the conclusion of the breach and the aftermath. What did you guys think of this chapter? 
> 
> Stay safe and have a good day 
> 
> \--Shyla 
> 
> -ps. my college classes start this week. I might have to update slower again.


	27. Ice Cream Break

When she first got her memories of her time as Alice, she hated the death god, for waiting until Summer died to give them back. It hadn't seemed fair that the first time she got a good mother that she wouldn't be able to have a life with her. In her pain, she'd thrown herself into being Ruby Rose without hesitation. She wanted to prove she could survive this world as a bitter way to get even with Anubis. So, she renounced her old life and stopped caring about the world she left, becoming Ruby down to her bones. She was ready for anything or at least that's what she thought.

Then the train crashed, and she found her teammate laying wounded. She'd been too slow, and Blake had paid the price. If she hadn't wasted so much time playing with the chainsaw user, then her teammate would be safe not knocked out on the ground. Jaune wouldn't be exhausted from transferring his aura to Blake either. Pyrrha wouldn't be defending them both from grimm despite the blood running down own her arm.

Clutching Crescent Rose tightly in her hand she felt guilty but not for the people around her; the innocent civilians, but for letting her team get hurt. Gritting her teeth, she tried to ignore the screams that echoed through the air; ringing in her ears. She didn't care that these people were dying, there was no point in worrying them when she needed to protect her team. Still, she wanted to finish off the grimm quickly before any more lives could be lost.

As her blade cut down grimm after grimm she hated that her aura was running so low. With all the years she'd spent training she should be able to be faster now. Pyrrha looked over at her leader worriedly as she covered Jaune. The reaper was using her semblance to dart around the battlefield without hesitation, yet it was too much. The girl was nothing more than a blur; she was using her aura too quickly and there was a chance she would burn out. Neptune watched the scene with his mouth hanging open. Awe and shock in his eyes.

"I can see why you call her a demon," he told Sun who was mostly distracted. Sun looked at Blake who was being guarded by her teammates. He could understand why Ruby had gone a little battle crazy however this wasn't her usual attack style. She didn't waste any movements, and her attacks were ruthless. Then she made a mistake. Hand going to his weapon he leaned forward just as Ruby's eyes widened.

Ruby stumbled coming to a stop as her aura ran out; it felt as if she was suddenly moving through quicksand. Looking up at the giant snake grimm heading in her direction she frowned before straightening and pulling back her scythe. In a flash of yellow her sister dropped in attacking without hesitation. Yang punched the grimm hissing at her sister and sent its head into the ground with enough force to crack the concrete. Rolling off its head she smirked at the younger girl.

"You okay Rubes," Yang asked only to freeze at the rage in her sister's eyes. Yeah, Ruby was not okay; in fact, this was the most anger she'd ever seen in her eyes. As Ruby transformed her scythe into a glaive and stabbed the snake grim in the head with much more force than necessary, Yang suddenly felt sorry for the creature.

"Blake got hurt," Ruby said simply as the grimm faded into smoke.

Yang winced and looked away from her sister, she knew how possessive and protective her sister could be. It was actually intimidating how attached Ruby could get to others. Anything that hurt her team became an issue Ruby would handle herself, however, she doubted Ruby could handle an entire grimm invasion. Seeing how horrible the girl looked Yang had a feeling Ruby would be angry for days or she would start pouting. Watching the atlas fleet show up, Ruby began walking back over to her team.

"How is she," Ruby asked kneeling beside Jaune.

Looking over her teammate she narrowed her gaze. The long-jagged claw marks from where the Ursa had slashed across the girl's stomach were healed but Blake was still unconscious. Ruby sighed in relief even though the memory of Blake covered in blood still haunted her mind. Glancing up as Sun made his way over to them as the Atlassian forces cleaned up the streets, she tried to smile at the boy. The expression fell flat.

Kneeling beside the girl, Sun laid a hand on Ruby's shoulder as she looked down at her teammate. Despite his own worry about the black-haired girl, he knew that Ruby felt horrible. Loosening her grip from her scythe, she closed her eyes as frustrated tears stung her eyes. She hated feeling so weak; so useless. As a team leader, she was supposed to keep them safe. Feeling the feather from her father brush against her face she wondered if she even deserved to lead her team.

(Ozpin)

Ozpin stared down from his tower and wondered if this had been part of Salem's plan. If she'd manipulated these events to suit her purposes while his people ran around like headless chickens. Not only was this something she would do, but he also knew that she wouldn't leave her tower to attack like this. He supposed she could have sent one of her minions. Humming slightly, he wondered if her minions had infiltrated the school before pushing the idea away; his security could never be breached. Idly he listened to the council talk before standing he didn't really care that Ironwood would be given control of the Vytal Festival; he cared about his students. Even if he didn't really show it, he did care. His students had arrived back at Beacon earlier and he wanted to check on them.

"If you'll excuse me, gentlemen," he said taking great satisfaction in cutting off their call. Politicians really were the worst race on Remnant; he missed the good old days when no one dared to question him. Walking to the elevator he was surprised when it opened and Ruby stalked into his office with a guarded expression on her face. Blinking he stared down at the girl before waving his arm toward the chair in front of his desk. Was his silver-eyed warrior finally going to confide in him? Trying not to get his hopes up he said, "I assume you want to talk about today."

Nodding the reaper took a seat she was wearing a simple pair of red leggings and a pale pink long sleeve shirt. Her combat clothes were still covered in blood, her teammate's blood. Digging her nails into her thighs she tried to pretend that she wasn't about to break apart. When he sat across from her and met her eyes he frowned. This was a different side to the girl than he was used to seeing. She seemed almost hesitant in her actions; it was worrying.

"How many people died today," she asked. Despite not caring much about the civilians she needed to know; those deaths were partly her fault after all. There was a chance her team might be blamed for their part in allowing the breach to happen and she was not going to allow that to happen. Tapping her foot on the floor she refused to look away from his gaze. He set down his mug for once not finding any interest in drinking his coffee.

"Civilian casualties were low compared to how bad it could have been," he said knowing all too well how much worse it could be. Memories of burning buildings and screams flashed through his mind before he pushed them away. Now was not a time to dwell on the past; he could do that when he was sleeping.

"I asked for a number headmaster," she said undeterred.

"Sixty two," he said finally. He watched her eyes close as she slammed her mental shields up at full force to keep from crying.

She'd known that people died during the breach but having a number, even if she'd asked for it, made it feel more real. The civilian casualties might've been unfortunate but worse was the reaction her team had to the breach. Her team was shattered. Pyrrha was trying to be strong for Jaune but was also wary of Blake due to the girl's action. Jaune was traumatized from seeing death up close, and Blake was finding it difficult to cope with her choice to take a life. Everything was a mess and the Vytal festival was coming up too which meant Cinder's plan was going to really kick-off

"I would like to request a week of recovery for my team away from Beacon," Ruby said knowing that they couldn't work on their issues here. For one she didn't need her sister to start treating her like a child and they needed to be away from everything for a while.

"Your team would get back right before the tournament," he said lacing his fingers together in thought. He could see that Ruby needed a break from Beacon; he occasionally felt the same as well. Sighing because he knew Glynda was going to kill him slowly he spoke, "very well you have until next Wednesday to return to Beacon. I truly apologize for any suffering this mission brought to you, Miss Rose."

She didn't care about any grief the mission brought her; she cared about her team. Nothing else mattered to her except making sure her team was alright, and this mission had thrown her team out of whack. Standing the reaper nodded stiffly as she had to go tell her team the news. She just hoped they would take it well. Offering him a small smile she felt a little better; maybe he wasn't as horrible and manipulative as she thought he was.

"Thank you, headmaster."

"Miss Rose, where will you take them," he asked curiously. Ruby twitched slightly at the question but had no reason not to answer the question.

"Home," she said simply referring to patch and the house she grew up in. Tai would still be on a mission for another week and a half so they would have the place to themselves unless her father decided to drop in. Ozpin nodded as he understood her reasoning sometimes home was the only place safety could be found.

"I hope your team resolves their issues," he stated meaning every word. It would be disappointing to lose four talented students; he needed all the warriors he could get.

"Me too," Ruby whispered as she entered the elevator. Now she just had to tell her team about the decision.

Exiting the elevator, she wasn't that surprised to see Cardin waiting on her. He was leaning against the wall watching her closely; he always knew when she needed him. Stalking toward him, she didn't care that she was rushing until she was crashing into him. Wrapping her arms around him she didn't hesitate to cling to his shirt. It was easy to press her face into his shirt and pretend that she was anywhere else. Feeling his own arms wrap around her made it even easier.

She had no idea if she was actually a good leader or if her team deserved someone better than she was. What she did know was that Cardin believed in her unconditionally. If she gave up now, then she would be betraying the trust that he placed in her. Her plans were more important than any emotional turmoil and her team was more important than her plans. Feeling his arms tighten around her she almost wanted to ask if she could hide in his room for the night. It wouldn't be the first time she decided to stay with him rather than confront her own problems.

"So, I'm guessing you're not doing good," he said as her hand tightened on his shirt. Feeling her shake her head, he sighed. His mission had gone better than hers; in fact, it had been boringly normal. What did he say to make her feel better? He had no idea how to help unless she told him what was wrong. Sighing he asked, "Want some ice cream?"

Pulling away she knew that she needed to talk to her team, but at the same time, she wanted to be around him. He was the only one she could possibly tell about everything without being judged for it. Giving a nod she smiled at him; ice cream sounded really good right now. Following him to the cafeteria she didn't say anything as they got their desserts. Taking the strawberry and chocolate ice cream he handed her, she smiled softly.

She knew that he really didn't like ice cream that much, so seeing him pick a peanut butter cookie instead. Letting him lead her to a secluded spot outside she sat down under the tree first. Taking a bit of her ice cream she turned watched him pace for a moment as if scanning the area for threats. Sitting down once he was sure they were alone, he scoffed lightly before viciously biting into his cookie. Blinking at the action she rolled her eyes and resisted the urge to laugh. Why was it that everything he did was aggressive?

Watching him devour the cookie, she ate her own ice cream with much less vigor. This was something that they'd always made time to do; although usually, it wasn't after she killed a man. How would Cardin react to her admitting that she killed someone? Knowing him he would shrug it off and ignore that it even happened. Or given that it was a White Fang member he might throw her a party. Leaning back against the tree, she hummed softly at the thought. The idea of Cardin raising a banner with her name on it was amusing in its own way.

"Sorry I couldn't help with the whole grimm invasion thing, my own team was in the infirmary," he said once he'd demolished his cookie. Shaking the crumbs off his hand he frowned slightly as he recalled the chaos that had followed the grimm invasion. He supposed that she'd known about the thing before it actually happened, but he doubted she could have stopped it.

"What happened?"

Twitching at the question he could clearly remember hearing Sky scream the word stairs right before he rammed into Dove. Their race resulted in a broken leg and a mild concussion; well he'd given them both a concussion after he caught up with them. Apparently, while diving off the stairs was faster than running down them it was also dangerous, also his teammates were idiots. It didn't help that when he had them writing lines for the next two hours with Russel supervising to make sure they didn't run away.

"Training accident," he said just slow enough to be considered the truth. There was no way that he would admit to what actually happened. Shifting to lay on the ground he asked, "So how are you doing? What all happened?"

"We went to Mountain Glen, I fell in a hole and landed on a White Fang operation," she said bluntly. Watching him twitch at the words White Fang she said, "I also saw Roman again and he had this really hot woman with him."

Of course, she did. Chuckling at the words he felt the tension fade from his body. If she was still able to focus on her crush, then she was perfectly fine. It was nice to know that Roman was still one of her priorities; all he had to do if he angered her was hunt down the thief and use him as a bargaining chip. Still, he could tell that something else was bothering her. She usually wouldn't act like someone just murdered her puppy. He knew for a fact that Jaune was perfectly fine.

"Alright, and why are you acting so weird?"

"Blake got hurt," she said. Shifting slightly at the rush of guilt she felt, she didn't know what else she could stay.

"I doubt that was your fault," he said. The day she purposely hurt her teammates was the day he stopped pretending that he didn't have emotions besides anger and annoyance.

"I feel like it was," she whispered just loud enough for him to hear her. Instead of responding to her words, he huffed; she blamed herself far too much.

"What else happened," he asked. when she shifted and gave a confused look, he rolled his eyes saying, "that isn't you're _ my teammate got hurt_ face it's the _ I messed up and now I'm worried how they'll react _ face."

She did not have an expression like that, did she? Raising a hand to poke her cheek she pouted. He'd spend way too much time around her if he could tell her expressions apart. It didn't help her pride that he was actually right about why she was acting so weird. Frowning slightly at the blow to her pride she took another bite of ice cream before sighing in defeat.

"I killed a White Fang agent," she admitted.

Sitting up quickly, he pinned her with a sharp stare as he processed the words. His first reaction was to throw her a party; his hate of the White Fang hadn't faded a bit in the last few years. he could stand to buy her a dozen or so boxes of cookies. She deserved it for ridding the world of one of the terrorists that plagued it, but from the expression on her face he doubted that she agreed. if she hadn't planned on killing the terrorist scum then she must have lost her temper. it made sense that she wouldn't want her teammates to learn she killed someone due to a momentary burst of anger.

He'd spent more than enough time around her to know that her temper was much worse than she pretended it was. After all, suppressing her negative emotions in favor of acting like a happy fool wasn't healthy. He had to wonder what the poor faunus did to anger her; she didn't usually react to taunts with murder. Slowly laying back down once he realized the staring was making her uncomfortable, he grinned.

"Your temper snapped," he said with just enough glee to sound amused.

"What if they hate me," she asked. rather than wonder how he knew that she'd lost her temper she decided to pout instead. it made sense that he knew she'd lost control. After all the last time she'd gotten close to killing someone it had been due to losing her temper.

"Doubtful, it's not like you're an insane killer or anything, you just lost your temper," he said. He didn't care that she'd killed someone; she was still his Ruby.

"He insinuated Blake belonged to someone else," she mumbled. The anger was still in her tone when she spoke, and he couldn't keep a smirk from his face.

"How possessive," he teased. The glare she sent him was more adorable than threatening. Raising an eyebrow, he said, "but seriously you need to work on that."

"I know," she said softly. IN her first life she'd had nothing, now that she had people, she cared about she couldn't help how possessive she was. She just wanted to protect what was hers, however she couldn't keep losing her temper. Shifting slightly, she decided to share something that had been bothering her by saying, "but I didn't feel anything when it happened. All I'm worried about is that my teammates will be upset."

"I don't blame you, Jaune's a bit of a pansy," he said instantly. The opportunity to take a shot at one of her teammates wasn't one he was going to miss out on.

"He's an adorable puppy!"

"I'm ignoring that," he snapped. There was no way he would ever admit to finding anything attractive about the blonde, even if he did agree with her. He knew what was really bothering her ant that was that she hadn't cared about killing the faunus. Normal people would have panicked about killing someone, but she simply didn't care. He could honestly say that he wouldn't' have cared about killing the faunus either, but Ruby wasn't him. Rolling over to look at her he wasn't that surprised to see a troubled expression on her face. in his opinion she cared too much both about her own actions and about her teammates. Tapping her leg, he said, "So what if you killed someone. We're huntsman, at our core we are killers. Be it monsters or humans we are not heroes, we're warriors."

Stilling, she stared at him. She could agree with his words, but she doubted her teammates would. Jaune was still trying to play hero and Pyrrha was raised to be honorable. She didn't blame them for their beliefs, but she knew without a doubt they would be upset by her actions. It wasn't as if she'd had to kill the faunus either, she'd chosen to kill him. Laying the half-eaten bowl of ice cream on the ground, she curled up beside him. Neither of them noticed the black crow sitting on the branches above them.

(Neo)

Staring down at the dagger she'd taken from Ruby; she couldn't stop herself from studying the weapon. It was simple but efficient, a good tool for a huntress or a killer. After playing around with Ruby's teammates for a few moments, just long enough to knock out the blonde, she'd seen the end of Ruby's fight. She could still remember the sight of Ruby throwing the faunus out of the train. Knowing that she'd been right about the girl was gratifying.

She'd been supposed to meet up with Cinder and become the woman's third teammate, but instead, she was taking the time to set up a safety net. She and Roman needed out of this situation and who better to go to than the owner of the largest black market in Vale. True it was nothing compared to Mistral, but he could still smuggle them out of the city. Looking up she entered the small weapon shop hoping that he wouldn't turn her away; from the reports he was fond of Ruby so the dagger should work as payment.

Nic looked up and froze seeing the girl who held up a blade he instantly recognized. Laying a hand on the shotgun under his counter, he frowned at the multicolored woman; if she'd hurt Ruby, he would kill her. It wouldn't be the first time he'd dealt with a threat to his little freeloader.

"Where did you get that," he asked slowly as she walked to the counter. Barely stopping himself from baring his teeth, he snapped, "Ruby would never give away a blade she made personally."

Smirking Neo typed a quick message on her scroll and held it up for him to see. She wanted out of Vale the second the Vytal festival ended; for both her and Roman. It was doubtful that Cinder would want to keep them around once the woman got what she wanted. The old man had all but announced Ruby's status as untouchable in Vale after the breach and she knew him well enough that he would make a deal for the right price. She watched the man silently waiting for his response while also keeping up her guard. Nic read the words for the third time and looked up at her face to find genuine regret, but also determination.

"If I agree this stay's secret," he asked just to make sure. Neo nodded instantly in agreement; she was desperate enough to agree to anything in order to get out of this Kingdom. Running his hand through his hair the old man said, "deal. One last trade, then both you and Roman are to leave Vale. I'll set up identities for the two of you in Mistral."

Reaching out she handed him the dagger as a peace offering having dropped her guard the moment he agreed. Instead of taking the weapon, he grabbed her wrist in a tight grip as his nails lengthened into claws. She felt something press against her skin and looked down: sharp claws stopped just before breaking skin. The action was both a warning and a promise of what would happen should she betray him.

"If you kill Ruby, I'll break you Neo," he warned faunus features on full display. The old lion of Atlas glared up at the young woman with lengthened fangs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I have one college class this summer and it's Chem 112 the second chemistry class in the sequence. It was supposed to start the third but my teacher is apparently having technical difficulties. I figure my updates will return to being chaotic too. This is probably the only one of my stories I'll be able to update on a regular basis (summer classes go really fast). That being said, I am working on another story at the moment too a currently unpublished one. What do you guys think of a Fullmetal Alchemist and Harry Potter crossover? It's weird I know and it's not exactly in my comfort zone but I rewatched Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood recently.
> 
> Anyway moving on from my chaotic story ideas; what did you guys think about the chapter? I tried to take a look at Ruby's emotional state this chapter and how she felt about killing. Qrow will show up next chapter and I'm really happy about that. 
> 
> stay safe and have a good day
> 
> \--Shyla


	28. Home

Despite the chaos in her team, Ruby smiled with fondness as she unlocked the house of her childhood home. Patch was a beautiful island and the wood cabin fit in perfectly with the forest around it. She'd spent hours losing herself in the trees surrounding the house when it became too difficult to stay inside. Although she had gotten used to living this life, it hadn't been easy in the beginning. Most of the time she tried not to think about the nightmares that had haunted her. Unpleasant thoughts should stay in the past where they belonged not waiting in her dreams like scavengers. Where was she again, right Patch. The island was home to several replaced Vale huntsmen and their families; people who wanted nothing more than to be left alone. As such the grimm population was very low except in the winter. No one wanted to hunt grimm in the snow plus the winter was used as a proving ground for apprentices and students. The elders got to sit out and watch while the kids got to slay monsters; it was a win for everyone.

Leading her team into the house she immediately heard snores. Feeling her heartbeat speed up even as her team tensed, she moved toward the sound. Peeking over the blue couch Ruby's smile twitched as she saw her father passed out on the floor a bottle of whiskey still sitting on the table. While she was happy that he was home, she wished that he hadn't gotten drunk the first chance he got. Resolving to deal with it later she made a motion for her team to be quiet and led them to her room.

"Pyrrha you, Jaune, and Blake can have my room," she told them planning to take over the couch. While she could take her dad's room or even Tai's, she doubted she would get much sleep over the week. Her room had two beds from when Yang decided to keep her company. Smiling she pretended not to notice the tension in their shoulders from her words. Instead, she said, "just keep away from the weapon chest in the corner. I'm going to go make something to eat."

Walking into the living room she stopped a few feet from her dad. The smile finally fell from her face as she took in the sad form of her father. Something told her that his mission hadn't gone as well as he wanted it to. Closing her eyes she reached up to touch the feather in her hair, before slumping slightly. As much as she pretended, her father wasn't perfect, he was human just like she was. That meant his drinking problem was an all too real issue that none of them liked to talk about. Taking the blanket off the couch she dropped it over his body before picking up the bottle of whiskey and walking to the kitchen.

Stepping into the kitchen brought back memories of baked cookies and strawberry milk; both her dad and Tai had tried to give her a childhood that would make Summer proud. Resting for a second beside the counter she took a moment to think about her mom. She wondered what Summer Rose would think about the life her daughter was living; what would the woman say if she knew that she'd killed a man? Wincing slightly at the thought she shrugged off her negative emotions. Thinking about the ideals of a dead woman wouldn't help anyone much less herself. Putting the bottle on the counter before she could copy her father's actions, she walked over to the fridge.

Looking at the fully stocked fridge, she wondered if Tai had been planning on going on a mission at all before deciding it didn't matter. her team would make good use of the food he'd left behind. She was really in the mood for comfort food right now, but nothing heavy. If she knew her dad, the second he smelt food he would be awake. catching sight of the fruit packing the shelves she grinned, fruit pancakes sounded really good right now.

Qrow groaned sitting up slowly as he recognized the scent of food coming from the kitchen. Reaching up to touch his pounding head he ran a hand through his hair before glancing at the table where he'd left his whiskey. The best way to deal with a hangover was to get drunk once again, but unfortunately, his bottle was gone. letting out another groan, he blinked slowly; the scent of food was doing more to make him nauseous then hungry. For a moment he wondered if Tai had come home early, it would be just like the blonde to steal his drinks. Stumbling to his feet the drunken huntsman tossed the blanket back onto the couch before flaring his aura through his body to get rid of the hangover. He'd expected to find a lot of things once he made it to the kitchen doorway, but his daughter standing at the stove wasn't one of them.

Humming softly, she flipped another pancake from the pan to the plate on the counter without even glancing at the plate. The fruit-laden pancake was the last one that she was going to cook, mainly because she'd already filled one other plate with the things. Turning off the stove she picked up the plate and spun around to put it on the table along with the second plate of pancakes and the plates of bacon and eggs. It was the first time she'd cooked anything other than cookies for her team; she just hoped that they liked it. As the plate touched the table, she looked up to see her father standing in the doorway his mouth hanging open.

"Hey, dad..."

She'd said the words without thinking just like when talking to Roman on the train. Face turning red the reaper looked down at the ground as she silently cursed herself. There went two years of careful planning. Why was it that she always acted like an idiot at the worst possible moment? He was obviously not ready for her to know the truth and she'd just discounted his feelings on the subject. Gripping the back of the chair closest to her, she resisted the urge to bolt for the door. She doubted that she would make it anyway.

He didn't know how to react as the word slipped from her lips, he'd never thought she would ever call him that. It was easy to see from the iron grip she had on the chair she hadn't meant to speak, but she wasn't running away. Catching sight of the feather in her hair, he rushed forward to pull her into a tight hug. He hadn't realized how much he wanted her to call him that until the word actually left her lips. It had been years since he'd chosen to become her teacher rather than her father and the idea still left a horrible taste in his mouth.

The moment his arms closed around her she froze. Her hand dropped from the chair and she stood there with her face against his chest. Was he hugging her? He wasn't mad at her for knowing the truth. Wrapping her arms around him she dug her nails into his shirt. It was different than hugging Cardin, not that she'd thought it wouldn't be, but it was also strange. In her first life, she didn't have a father, not a good one anyway, so this wasn't something she was used too.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered emotions threatening to overwhelm him. Tightening his grip for a moment he waited for her to push him away or snap at him; he had abandoned her after all. Instead, she chuckled the sound muffled by his chest before she pulled away reluctantly. She could almost feel Blake's stare burning into them. Glancing past him at her faunus teammate she rolled her eyes before stilling as he reached out to touch the feather in her hair. Raising an eyebrow, she waited for him to say something but instead, he moved away from her.

Blake watched the moment from the doorway wishing her own parents were there but pushed the idea away when she realized they would be disappointed in her. If they knew that she'd killed someone they would think she was exactly like the White Fang they left behind. She wouldn't blame them either, she had taken a life; a faunus life. Somehow that made it worse than if she'd taken a human life. She'd fought so long for her people that taking even one life felt like she was betraying them.

Seeing the doubt in Blake's eyes she sighed before fully turning to face her teammate. Right now her teammates needed her, she couldn't be thinking about herself right now. Putting a fake smile on her face she said, "Blake can you go get the others we should eat before we start talking."

"Of course," the girl said. Glancing at the man who she assumed was her leader's father she tried not to wilt under the curious look Qrow sent in her direction.

"Huh, I guess your teams here," he said. Watching the black-haired girl vanish, he tried to pretend that he approved of her teammates. Seeing her smile fade he pushed back his initial rush of annoyance that he felt toward her teammate.

"I'll tell you everything," she said. In the short time, before her team returned, she did just that; she told him everything except her action on the train. And her crush on Roman; there was no way she was going to tell him about her fondness for a thief. While she doubted her father would reject her for killing someone, she knew that her teammates could be back at any moment.

Qrow waited until she was done to pick up the bottle of whiskey and downing the rest of it all at once. His daughter had been through so much over the last few months, not all of it good. He'd known that she was ready for Beacon skill-wise, but he didn't know if she was ready emotionally. His daughter was strong, almost at the same level as a fourth year, but she was still a teenager. Although he tried not to notice he knew she was emotionally estranged from people her own age. She had inherited her recklessness as well making for a bad combination. Ruby wasn't even surprised that after his drink, he wandered over to the table and collapsed into a chair.

"Oz is going to be ticked," he said referring to the state of her team rather than anything else. he could see that there was more weighing on her mind than she was willing to admit as well. Ruby nodded in agreement and he felt an urge of vindictive rage at her team. Smirking he asked, "you and your team have a week off, right?"

"Yes," she said. Almost reading his mind she shifted allowing a matching smirk to appear on her face before hiding it as her teammates came into the kitchen and sat down. it wouldn't do to scare them before training even started. Choosing a seat across from him she smiled innocently as she asked, "want to help with our training?"

"Ruby I thought this was going to be a team thing," Jaune whined sounding more like himself than he had since the grimm invasion. Throwing a glance at his leader who seemed way to innocent not to be planning something, he felt slightly threatened. Instead of calling Ruby on her act, he looked at his girlfriend instead. Pyrrha nibbled on her bacon silently not wanting to say the wrong thing and insult her leader.

"My father is a professional huntsman, he'd be a great teacher," Ruby told him before glancing over at Blake for a second. The cat faunus hadn't spoken much since they'd left Beacon and she was worried. Meeting Blake's golden eyes she felt a bit of hope that her teammate was doing better only for that feeling to die when Blake looked back down at her plate.

Why was it so hard for her to fix this? She cared about her teammates, probably more than she should, so why couldn't she fix this already? It was never this hard to talk things out with Cardin but that was the issue; no one was talking. They couldn't get past this unless they were willing to talk through the problem. Jaune was too stuck in the idea of being a hero to realize that the world was a much darker place while Blake was drowning in her own guilt and self-doubt. It was infuriating but reacting with anger wouldn't help.

Feeling her fingers twitch, she frowned. There was no way she could make her teammates talk to her. She'd failed as a leader; everything she'd done until now was for nothing. She was still that same lonely little girl who loved a demon only for that demon to kill her. At this rate was going to lead her teammates right off a cliff and get them all killed. Forget Cinder, she was the biggest threat to there safety. It would have been better if she'd never gone to Beacon in the first place.

Ruby looked down at her uneaten food-filled plate she felt sick. Now her nightmares were haunting her during the daytime too. It was nice that her demons were equal opportunity predators; they just made her life so much more interesting. Right well this silence was the worst kind of oppressive and if she stayed here any longer, she might actually get sick. Standing with a smile, that was completely fake, she said, "I'm going to visit mom."

Qrow watched his daughter leave the room and almost called her back after seeing the carefully concealed pain in her eyes. He was probably the only one besides Cardin who could tell when she was faking. The boy might be a arrogant little rodent, but he was good for his daughter. Loyalty was important and Cardin was loyal to his daughter; that was the only reason he hadn't kicked him off a cliff. Still, he had bigger things to deal with than Ruby's accomplice. Hearing the door shut he took a moment to study her teammates.

They were sitting with looks of complete discomfort on their faces but none of them seemed to realize that they'd driven their leader away. Ruby was insanely clingy; she got if from her mom, for them to drive her away was almost incredible in the worst sort of way. The blonde on her team was someone he could have compared to Tai, but his blonde was never a coward. From what she told him the boy was only just now learning how to fight but that was no excuse for him to act like a child. The redhead was a tournament fighter, she had no idea what it meant to fight for her life. She was most likely still trying to play by the rules she'd learned in her matches. And of course, the black-haired faunus. He'd spent time on Menagerie, having the daughter of their chief on her team made Ruby a target.

Ruby was a good person, but she was also a ruthless little thing. She was able to separate her own emotions from her actions however she got attached to people quickly. He had no idea what she would do when she realized that she couldn't protect them from everything. One day the loyalty of her team would be tested he had no idea what she would do when that happened. How would she react if her teammates betrayed her?

"What the hell are you brats playing at?"

All three froze at his question, however, Jaune was the only one who looked up at him. Blinking in surprise at his words he didn't notice the reactions of his teammates. Pyrrha flinched, having already noticed something was wrong with Ruby but chose to do nothing to help, while Blake tightened her grip on her fork and looked away. None of their reactions even remotely calmed down the enraged father sitting across from them. Hand twitching toward his fork, the man tried not to think about the fact he knew seven different ways to kill them with it. At this point Cardin was a better friend for his daughter; even the idea left a sour taste in his mouth.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

The worst part was he was pretty sure the boy was clueless which somehow made it worse. This was why he hated kids. Running a hand through his hair, the man resisted the urge to throw the table at them. The only way to do that was to remind himself that he got to beat them into the ground during training; revenge would be sweet. Feeling his temper start to subside he breathed out slowly as he released the iron grip he had on the table. Tai would flip if he came home to find his table broken.

Stacking enough food on his plate that he would be able to hold out until dinner, the man stood. If he stayed here, he would say something that he regretted. Wait... no, he wouldn't because none of these kids meant a thing to him outside of the fact, they were his daughter's teammates. He didn't have to hold his tongue just to make them feel a little better about themselves. He could be as vicious as he wanted, and Ruby wasn't here to stop him either.

"Jaune Arc," he stated gaining the boy's attention. Smirking cruelly, he said, "a worthless excuse of a huntsman who wants to be a hero but can't realize that being a hero and a monster are two sides of the same coin. For every person that cheers your name, another will curse your existence, and no one will thank you for killing their demons. It's an unspoken fact that huntsmen are feared by civilians. You will never be the hero of any story other than your own."

He watched the boy just long enough to see him pale as the words sank in before turning to the redhead. Ruby's partner was glaring at him for his words to her boyfriend; yes, he knew about that, Ruby had called him a one in the morning to gush about her plans working. Either way the redhead was too emotionally involved to see that Jaune needed to hear this, not that he was the only person on the team that had flaws. Meeting the girl's glaring eyes; her expression was totally not threatening, they needed to work on that.

"Pyrrha Nikos," he started, and she shrank down at his voice. Well there goes the glare; gods these kids were pathetic. Twitching slightly, he said, "the champion, untouchable, but also just a little girl prodigy with the talent to reach the top, yet that makes you a target for hate. I'm sure there are several talented Mistral fighters that curse your existence with every breath they take. Not only that but you're too by the books. There are so many flaws with your mentality and fighting style that I can't even begin to list them."

The girl frowned at his words but before she could speak, he waved a hand to shut her up. Watching her mouth close he raised an eyebrow just enough to mock her. He would have felt better if she'd argued with him instead of falling silent. The respect she had for authority figures was a big issue especially since not everyone in power was a good person; Jimmy being the example. The man was a paranoid idiot, anyway, back to dressing down his daughter's teammates.

"Blake Belladonna," he said her name with enough anger that she glanced up at him only to look back down at the table. For a former terrorist she really was a weak-willed girl, he supposed that was why she hadn't made it as a terrorist. Keeping the smirk on his face he said, "former white fang, abandonment and trust issues also being targeted by a bull faunus with stubbornness issues. Out of all of you brats, I thought you would be the one to notice Ruby acting strange, or maybe you just don't care enough to notice. What I do know is that the moment I told your parents you were at Beacon they were overjoyed; they'll be disappointed that you're still the same little girl who ran away from home without a word."

Blake looked down at the table with shock and guilt at his words and Qrow watched the three try to come to terms with his break down of them before his anger overcame his reasoning. Even now they didn't try to fight his words they just accepted it. This was not the team he wanted for his daughter; they had no courage. None of them were willing to fight back against him or even for each other. They were weak little kids who had no idea how the real world worked and trying to protect them would get his daughter killed. Briefly, he wondered if Ozpin would allow him to drag his daughter out of Beacon for an apprenticeship before throwing away the idea. Ruby was already attached to the fools.

"Ruby's told me everything about her team," he said repressing a shudder. He never needed to know what color Jaune's boxers were or how many pancakes Pyrrha could eat in thirty seconds. Seriously there were some things he didn't need to know about them; like where Blake kept her porn collection. Feeling the urge to get drunk he said, "but the one thing she's never done is complain. She's picked you all up and, in some cases, spearheaded your training herself. Through all of it, she's never asked any of you for anything, yet none of you can see how she's falling apart. Who the hell do you think you are to be so damn blind when she's hypersensitive to all of you stupid brats! "

By the end, he was yelling hands curled into fists to keep from breaking Tai's table. Growling the man's red eyes pinned them with one last glare before he grabbed his plate and the bottle of whiskey from the counter. Stomping from the room he didn't notice the look shared between the three of them. Blake winced at the words as she thought back on Ruby's actions leading up to the arrival to Patch, did they really ignore their leader's emotions that much?

(Ruby)

Ignoring the instinctive urge to run as she met the cold red eyes of her aunt. She returned the woman's stare with her own. It had been years since she saw the older woman and she knew Yang would kill to be in her place. Shifting on her heel she watched the woman warily as she approached. The sea breeze wafting in from the cliffside caused her to shiver slightly. She knew that the woman was studying her, but she wouldn't back down.

"You're her child," Raven mused looking at the girl closely. There were so many similarities to Summer it was almost like looking at a replica. Ruby had obviously changed from the depressed seven-year-old child she used to be. However, it was also obvious that Ruby wasn't completely different than the little girl she'd comforted after Summer's funeral. She could see the pain in the way the girl hunched her shoulder and in the glistening of the child's eyes that she tried to hide. In truth, if she hadn't been looking for a crack it was likely the girls mask would have fooled her. It was hard not to look for that crying girl when it was the last memory she'd had of the child.

"Yes," Ruby said simply. Watching the woman closely she decided to keep her connection to Qrow a secret. Without faltering under the woman's gaze, she asked, "you were on mom's team, right?"

"I was. You look a lot like her," Raven said.

Catching sight of the feather in the girl's hair, she frowned before reaching out to catch the accessory in her hand. Holding it gently she knew just from touch it was her brothers. She supposed it made sense for her brother to do something like this; the girl was his apprentice. Still for him to claim Ruby was an adult by Branwen tribe tradition was slightly strange. Releasing the accessory, she only hesitated a moment before laying her hand on the girl's head. Paying no mind to how tense the girl was she felt a pang of heartache. She missed her partner. Blinking away the thoughts before they could hurt her any further, she moved to leave.

"I wish you well."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, sorry for the late update.
> 
> Anyway, I responded to a few reviews on Fanfiction.net and decided you guys shouldn't be left in the dark. So, yes, Ruby does mirror Adam although she's slightly more moral. She follows her own desires rather than trying to follow the greater good. At the moment the only thing that keeps her in the light is her friends and family. Adam himself will have an issue with Blake killing a faunus. A very big issue.
> 
> Also, I'm pretty sure I'm suffering from sleep deprivation, but on the bright side, I finished 13 chapters of my Fullmetal Alchemist and Harry Potter crossover. Two more and I'll start publishing it. I still don't have a title yet so I'll have to think about that. I also have a chem test due by Monday and two assignments due tomorrow. Right now though I'm going to go crash. 
> 
> Let me know if you guys have any questions about the story or about my upcoming story. Stay safe and have a good day. 
> 
> \-- Shyla


	29. Parenting Regrets

Walking back into the house, she immediately knew her team was asleep; mainly because it was almost midnight. No one would be awake this late except for her dad who was sitting at the table waiting on her the same way Tai did after she snuck out only to return at four in the morning with a slight hangover. forcing her shoulders to relax, she thought about simply walking past him and up the stairs before sighing in exhaustion. Walking over to the table, she sat down across from him watching with vague amusement as he swirled the alcohol in his glass with annoyance in his eyes.

"So, your team is being a bunch of brats," he said causing her to wince. The amusement faded from her eyes as she frowned; she'd failed as a team leader. On her watch, Blake had gotten hurt and Jaune was caused mental trauma. Why couldn't she do anything right? Would it have been better if she'd never gone to Beacon in the first place? She would have been able to move a lot easier without worrying about classes. The worst part of this situation however was that she missed her team from before the breach. She wanted things to go back to normal.

"I don't know what to do," she admitted softly causing him to frown down at his glass. Shifting in her seat she crossed her elbows on the table as she resisted the urge to begin pacing instead she said, "I tried so hard to be a good leader but now no one's speaking, and I'm scared I'll say the wrong thing and lose them forever. Worse I have no idea how to fix everything and Cardin is no help. Maybe it would have been better if I never went to Beacon at all."

Twitching the man shoved down the initial urge to disagree with her in favor of taking a long, very long, drink from his glass. Ruby was so much like her mother that it hurt; Summer had the same issues with being a leader. Only Summer didn't have the teenage version of a lost puppy following her around; or was Cardin more like a ruthless ferret thrashing around in the dirt, he could never decide. Anyway, he doubted his daughter would appreciate him comparing her greatest ally with random animals.

Oh god, he could still remember the two months they spent dating. He'd felt like murdering the boy with a rusted spoon which he could recall caused Ruby to break into laughter. As usual, she'd seemed more amused by his actions than anything else. His daughter was strange, he could admit that, she didn't seem to care all that much about morals; given she was related to Raven it wasn't that shocking she would have a warped idea of right and wrong. Even he had an unpopular idea of morality. When he looked at Ruby it was easy to see his sister in her too. Especially when she was fighting; that bloodlust of hers was all Raven.

Given that she hadn't felt anything when she killed that White Fang agent it should have worried him how like his sister she was. It didn't. Well, he was sure there was some small part of him that worried for the future, however, that was overshadowed by the fact he now knew she wouldn't allow herself to be killed due to some sense of honor or justice. The battlefield was no place for petty ideals that could get someone killed; he'd seen more than enough of his colleges fall to their ideals rather than an enemy blade. In truth, he was happy that his daughter had that warped sense of morality that the Branwens were so famous for.

"No teams perfect," he said finally. Sitting his glass down on the table, he closed his eyes for a moment remembering the craziness that was team STRQ. He missed the old days of just being insane with his team; he especially missed Summer. Tightening his grip on the glass in his hand he said, "my team had plenty of troubles too mainly due to our own pride. Summer was always trying to take on the world while Raven didn't care about anything outside our team, so she came off as antisocial and cruel. Oh, but get within five feet after threatening her teammates and she would put you in the ground faster than you could blink. Tai was an idiot playboy who had a major crush on my sister for years it was actually horrifying to watch him try to flirt with her. I just wanted to be useful for once and Summer needed me. She made me feel wanted for the first time in my life. I would have done anything for her."

His voice broke at the admission causing her to flinch. Watching him down the rest of his glass and pour another she could understand the feeling of despair that clung to him all too well. She missed her mom, not the woman who abandoned her either if she had to pick Summer was the only mother she ever had. The vague memories of freshly baked cookies and bedtime stories were more than enough to elevate the woman above the heartless bitch that was willing to sell her own daughter. Shoving the rush of anger back into the box in her mind it escaped from she stood slowly causing his eyes to lock onto her.

Offering a small smile that did nothing to hide the sadness in her eyes, she said, "I think we need some hot chocolate."

The amused huff of laughter that she got in return was all the approval she needed. Grinning she moved over to the cabinets to find the boxes. She refused to think about her team; although Jaune would love hot chocolate. This time was to be spent bonding with her father not thinking about her teammates who didn't even want to be around each other much less her. If only Cardin was here to tell her what they were thinking then she wouldn't have to guess or try to figure it out herself. Not that he could read their minds, he was an empath, not a telepath.

Was it wrong she actually shuddered at the thought of reading the minds of the Beacon population? They were horny teenagers after all and she was pretty sure that most of Pyrrha's thoughts were on how to get Jaune to love her. Not that the beautiful redhead needed to put in much work. With her looks Pyrrha could have anyone in Beacon that she wanted; if Ruby hadn't been so invested in Arkos she might've tried to seduce the older girl. Well, at least she still had Roman to pine after, which led her back to the fact Neo was hot. Like hot enough to make her swear off men if only for a few seconds.

Wait... what was she supposed to be doing right now? Hot chocolate that would need a minute or two for the water to stop boiling. That gave her plenty of time to think about her nonexistent sex life. She blamed puberty and awkward teenage hormones for her thoughts right now. Either way, it wasn't fair that she was fifteen again when she'd died a very sexually active woman; although her lover had betrayed her and left her to die which said a lot about her ability to pick men. Now she had a not so subtle crush on Roman too.

Gods when had she turned into such a stereotypical teenager? Was this the so-called bad boy phase that Tai had ranted about when Yang discovered dance clubs? Then again, she was vaguely sure that being a murdering psychopath was worse than her sister's habit of getting drunk every weekend not that Yang was doing that much anymore seeing as how she had an heiress to please. It said a lot when her sister had a better sex life than her. Finishing off the two cups of hot chocolate she pushed all thoughts of sex out of her mind because it was not a topic she wanted to cover with her dad.

Carrying the cups over to the table she handed his over as he raised an eyebrow at the mountain of marshmallows she'd created in her own cup. The scoff of amusement he let out was rewarded with a blush as she pouted. If he could put liquor in his hot chocolate, then she could very well steal all the mini marshmallows. Pushing them down into the cup until it was more of a gooey mess than a drink, she watched him mix his alcohol into his own cup.

Smiling Qrow leaned his back in his chair but the expression was more bitter than anything else. Studying the girl in front of him it was easy to remember her as a little girl following him around and begging him to teach her. Tapping his fingers against his cup he said, "it's amazing how much you've grown. I can still remember the time you tried to use my sword and fell in the river; in fact, I think I still have pictures. I never imagined you'd learn the truth."

"Technically I always knew," she corrected immediately and Qrow smirked. She was hoping to move away from the fact she'd been a foolish ten-year-old that thought she could use a great sword. Daggers were nice, very nice, and they didn't lead to awkward conversations about why it was a bad idea to let little girls around heavy weapons.

"Then you know why I made the choice I did," he said the smirk fading. There wasn't a day that went by that he didn't regret his choice, but it was something that had to be done. he would rather suffer without claiming his daughter than allow her to be hurt by his enemies. Ruby was much too bright to be killed by the demons that hunted him down. Taking a sip of his drink he watched her face closely to see if she actually understood.

"You were trying to keep me safe," Ruby said simply. She could understand his reasoning and she didn't fault him for doing what he thought was right yet that didn't mean that having him leave her didn't hurt. Looking past that was easy for her, however, she knew all too easily the choices someone would have to make to protect those they loved.

"Ruby when your mother died, I was there," Qrow said looking away from his daughter. He never wanted to lose her the same way that he lost her mother. Summer had been his entire world and living without her had turned him into a drunk fool all too willing to take on suicide missions just to feel alive. It wasn't a life he would wish on anyone even Salem's followers. Tightening his grip on the cup he admitted, "and it was my fault. I couldn't be the cause of your death too not when you're all I have left of your mother. Summer and I made so many enemies, and all of them would have come after you just to even the score."

She didn't need Cardin here to know he was drowning in self-blame. How many times had she thought everything was her fault simply because she'd been unable to stop something from happening? There was no one alive that could truly know everything or stop all the horrible things from happening. Life was a wicked beautiful dream that didn't give a damn what they wanted. Bad things were going to happen and simply blaming themselves wouldn't make it go away.

"It wasn't your fault," she protested startling him. Meeting his eyes with a cold gaze she dared him to argue with her as she said, "whatever happened It wasn't your fault because you loved mom and you love me. You would never have killed her."

"Still if I was faster or stronger then she wouldn't have died and you would still have your mother here to see you grow up," he stated bluntly. His shoulders hunched as he stared down at the table with haunted eyes. Ruby decided to let it go because he wouldn't change his mind instead, she changed the subject.

"Were you ever going to tell me," Ruby asked softly. Qrow flinched and that was all the answer she needed to know he wasn't ever going to tell her. She would have been kept in the dark her whole life; it was hard to keep her anger in check at the idea. Frowning the reaper said, "did you not think I would be strong enough? Or was I just not good enough to be your daughter?"

Qrow's eyes snapped back to her as she realized what she'd said, why the holy hell did she ever think saying that was a good idea? It was obvious that he loved her so why was her first response to act on her own insecurities. Gods she was stupid. Slapping a hand over her mouth the girl looked down at the table with darkened eyes. Why was she such an insecure teenager? His chair scraped against the floor as he stood and stalked around the table to pull her into his arms.

"Ruby you are the best thing to ever happen to me," he told her tightening his grip for a second. Eyes widening, she shoved down the instinctive urge to cry instead she reached up to grip his shirt. She loved him just like she loved summer. He was her father in all the ways that counted she would never allow anyone to hurt him. His enemies could come for her, but they would only succeed in getting themselves killed. Closing her eyes, she knew that if anyone tried to harm him, she would get a lot more blood on her hands; she would enjoy it too. His hand patted her hair gently and she relaxed as he ordered, "don't think for an instant that you're not good enough."

(Tyrian)

There was a child tugging on his hand. He was a murderer and while he knew she had no idea of that fact; it was still unsettling that she wanted him to play tag with her. Eliza had finally warmed up enough to him to actually talk to him. It would be so easy to plunge his tail through her chest then sit back to watch her bleed out, but he couldn't move. Her open innocent eyes stared up at him silently begging him to keep her company. Slumping in defeat he allowed the child to drag him out into the yard without much fuss. The heat of Cora's eyes was digging into his back as he followed her daughter.

Eliza beamed at him a wide happy smile on her face as the child proudly proclaimed that he was it before rushing away. Scoffing in mild amusement, he tensed for a brief moment his eyes tracking the girl only to stiffen when she vanished. Blinking in shock he glanced over at Cora when she giggled before narrowing his gaze. The girl could turn invisible...how interesting. His tail twitched behind him as he scanned the yard for any disturbances. It was cruel of her not to tell him about her semblance before they started playing. He was starting to like this child.

Dirt was brushing into the air just a bit and he grinned. The wicked expression was all the warning Cora had before he was kicking off the ground. Shrieking the girl clung to his arm as he picked her up off the ground easily. The shocked expression on her face caused him to roar in laughter as she squirmed in his grip. Pouting she huffed as he considered setting her back down on the ground. Letting his grin fade into a smirk he changed his grip until he was able to toss her into the air. A panicked scream left her lips for only an instant before his hands were catching her gently.

Fingers twitching, Cora couldn't stop the sad smile from forming on her lips as Eliza's screams turned into wild laughter. She'd never seen her daughter so happy; it hurt to know that the paradise she'd created for her little girl was the one thing keeping her from being truly alive. Was she the reason her daughter was so unhappy? Stumbling back into the house she sat down at the table with uncertainty on her face. Did she make the right choice all those years ago? Before Tyrian arrived, Eliza hadn't seen another human much less had a normal childhood.

She'd just wanted her daughter to grow up without being hurt by the world, was that so wrong? The guilt ate her alive because the only world her daughter knew was the one, she'd created to keep her safe. Eliza was safe here, but she wasn't truly living, neither of them was. Her life had stopped the day the man she loved called her a freak before she could even think of telling him that she was pregnant with his child. Gripping her pendant tightly she frowned. Ozpin had tried to guilt her into fighting his war, and she had no doubt Tyrian would threaten her into working for Salem. He was stronger than her, she'd known that since the moment he recovered enough to walk. She had no choice but to either kill him or side with Salem. The man might smell like blood, but he'd made Eliza smile and laugh for the first time in years.

Glancing up as he entered the house, she could see the amusement in his eyes. His tail was wrapped around his waist and she could hear Eliza running around outside. It would have been easy for him to hurt her little girl. All it would have taken was one movement and he could have killed Eliza easily, she knew that. Just like she knew that he was a monster. She was starting to think a monster wasn't as bad as the self-proclaimed leader of humanity. For one he hadn't tried to threaten her daughter to get her compliance.

"If I come with you can you promise my daughter will be safe," she asked.

The question caught him off guard causing his eyes to widen. Her brown eyes were still guarded but just like the first time he'd seen them, he was reminded of warm chocolate. Part of him had no idea what he could say to the woman. His mistress was ruthless, and he had no doubt she would sacrifice a little girl to defeat Ozpin. For once the thought didn't bring him comfort. Eliza was a child and Cora was sitting here willing to work with them. Nothing would happen to either of them, he wouldn't allow it.

"I'd bet my life on it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, I hope you're having a great day. My chem teacher is annoying as hell given that he still hasn't posted Module two yet. Anyway enough about my sucky college courses, what did you guys think of the chapter?
> 
> I loved writing Qrow and Ruby's talk and Ruby's wandering thoughts were amusing. Either way, I'm completely invested in building a relationship between Tyrian and Cora. Although given my thought processes it might not end well for either of them. 
> 
> so the next chapter is the end of the Patch Island chapters while after that starts the Vytal Festival. 
> 
> stay safe and have a good day 
> 
> \--Shyla 
> 
> ps. anyone have any title ideas for a Fullmetal Alchemist and Harry Potter crossover; I'm fourteen chapters in and have no idea what I'm going to title it.


	30. Not a Hero

So that thing about awkward conversations not being so bad; yeah totally untrue. All she had to do was walk into her bedroom to cause her entire team to stiffen as if she'd just carried in the severed head of her enemies. Not that she would ever do anything so horrible or inhumane. It was bad when she couldn't even convince herself that she wasn't a psychopath, maybe she needed a therapist. There was a little unresolved trauma from starving to death after being betrayed by the man she loved for no other reason than finally growing a spine. Okay she had more than a few issues. Moving on from her strangely broken mental state, her teammates were seriously acting weird. It didn't help that her dad had most likely chewed them out until they looked like one of Zwei's squeaky toys.

Jaune was huddled beside the window as if he was waiting for the perfect moment to jump out and escape into the forest. She would pay money to watch him run around the forest in his bunny pajamas. Smirking slightly, she turned her attention to Blake who had decided to huddle in the opposite corner of the room because that was subtle. Two people on opposite sides of the room definitely didn't have issues with each other. Internally rolling her eyes she allowed her amusement to vanish. She understood that her puppy had issues with taking a life; if she was normal, she would feel the same. The fact her kitten had murdered someone put her in direct conflict with her poor little puppy.

Pyrrha was the only one who met her eyes, but it was obvious the redhead had no idea how to react to this situation. Due to her relationship with Jaune, it was entirely possible that Pyrrha would side with Jaune if it came to a fight. She also knew that Pyrrha most likely had an issue with murder too. Internally groaning she felt the urge to simply call Cardin and toss him in the room hoping he would use his semblance to solve her issues. Sadly, he was back at Beacon meaning she would have to deal with her teammates herself. Relying on him to solve her issues wasn't a good lifelong strategy.

"I think that we all need to talk," Ruby said causing them to look at her as if she'd just kicked Zwei across the room while cackling like a villain. Right well that was insulting; she was trying to be the mature one for once too. Pushing down the urge to pout, she stalked over to her bed and sat down before motioning for them to sit on the one opposite to her. The way both Blake and Jaune flinched at the silent order made her want to slam her head against the wall. How was fixing her team worse than dealing with Yang? Watching Pyrrha tug Jaune over to the bed, she had to push down the slightly amused urge to tease them as Blake copied the action. It was very noticeable that Blake kept Pyrrha between her and Jaune. She waited until they relaxed a little bit until saying, "we are supposed to be a team, but that doesn't mean we're all perfect; we all have our morals and sometimes those will clash."

From the way they simply looked down at their hands this wasn't going to be as easy as she would have hoped. Right well it wasn't like she could beat them into the floor and hope it made everything better. She'd never had to confront an issue like this before; usually Cardin knew how to read her emotions and she didn't actually grow close to anyone outside her family before Beacon. Mainly because they were all boring, also her family was already used to solving their own issues. Okay, setting aside her discomfort with the situation and how she'd rather be anywhere else, she would try to fix everything before making Cardin do it for her.

"I'm not a good person, which you've probably figured out already. I'm selfish, cruel, and all-around not the hero of anyone's story but my own. I'm a huntress because it will help me, but I do care about my friends, I care about you three enough to call you family so either you talk to me or don't but sitting here and avoiding each other won't help anyone much less ourselves," she stated. When only Blake looked up at her while the other two stared at their hands she snarled. It was time to stop playing nice because she was done letting her team break apart simply because they were too foolish to talk to each other. Digging her nails into the bed she snapped, "Alright listen, our mission ended about as well as trying to cut Yang's hair, but we didn't completely fail. Roman is currently being entertained by Ironwood, so yes its hard to know that Blake killed someone I understand that. But can you three honestly tell me you signed up for this job thinking you would never have to kill someone; that's just naïve."

Outside the room, Qrow choked on his coffee. The one time he decides to drink something that wouldn't get him drunk was when his daughter decided to copy her mother. Pressing his back against the wall beside the open door; it was nice to know Ruby trusted him enough to hold this conversation within listening range. He wondered if taking the combat professor job at Beacon was still an option if only so he could be close to his daughter. Ruby was insanely similar to her mother, not just in looks, he'd known for years that his amazing fiancé was more of a functioning psychopath than anything else. He'd balanced out her crazy with his own, but Ruby's team couldn't do that. They were too focused on themselves and being perfect heroes to face the facts of life. In short, they were kids while Ruby was a wild wolf hoping to find a pack that could keep up with her.

It was too bad that the only people able to keep up with her were those with the same morality. He had no doubt that Yang loved Ruby, but she would never be able to stand on his daughter's level. It might sound arrogant, but Yang was too open and happy to do the things that Ruby could and most likely would do. His niece was a good person, Ruby wasn't. Don't' get him wrong he loved his daughter and he had no doubt that she would make an excellent huntress, but she was all the things she'd claimed to be. She saw her team as possessions just like her mother had; he was pretty sure Cardin was the only one she considered her true friend.

Was it wrong he'd stalked his daughter enough to know her mentality just by watching? Most likely but it had led to the conclusion that Ruby was just like Summer with a sprinkle of Raven's cruelty. Given that Tai had raised Yang to have a strict moral code with the fear that Raven's DNA would end up turning her into a mini bandit it wasn't all that shocking the blonde had missed Ruby's darker traits. After all the man would and could ignore anything unless it slapped him in the face and ran away with his wallet; he knew that from experience.

"I'm not naive," Jaune protested as he finally looked up. Raising an eyebrow at his defensive tone she barely had to wait a moment before he winced.

"You came to Beacon with no idea what aura was," Ruby pointed out although that was more a sign of stupidity than being naïve. Jaune twitched a bit at her words before looking away from her. Just because it was the truth didn't mean he had to like hearing it.

"I thought I could make it," he whispered sadly never taking his eyes away from the floor; holding back a wince at the tone he used Ruby frowned as Pyrrha took his hand.

"Listen all our missions are going to be tough," Ruby said gaining their attention again. Shifting she considered lying before deciding that the truth would help more than a pretty lie. Making sure to watch them closely she said, "most of the White Fang we fought on the train didn't make it out of the tunnels, and over sixty citizens died during the breach. We failed to protect the people of Vale that's the harsh truth, if we had stopped the train then those people wouldn't have died. But the blame isn't on any of you, it's on me."

"Ruby, we-"

"I'm the leader of this team, all the blame for your actions lay on my shoulders," the girl stated simply causing Pyrrha to fall silent. Offering the redhead, a small smile she didn't blame Jaune for frowning as he realized that their actions reflected on their leader.

"I don't deserve to be on this team," Blake said softly drawing their attention to her. Wincing Ruby opened her mouth to argue that yes her kitten did belong on this team, but Blake said, "I'm supposed to be a huntress, but I killed that guy without hesitation. I could have knocked him out but I-"

"Enough," Ruby hissed her nails digging into her palm. Flinching at the tone the black-haired girl shifted away from her leader's apparent anger. Crossing her arms Ruby snapped, "huntsman and huntresses are killers. It doesn't matter how it doesn't matter when but each of us will kill someone because this is the job we picked. We are not heroes and this job is not some grand honor it's a job just like any other."

"It's true," Qrow said from his spot by the door. The solemn tone of his voice was enough to make her teammates twitch but Ruby simply sighed. Leaning back, she dropped down onto her bed and stared up at the ceiling. Maybe he could get through to her teammates. Frowning at his daughter's actions Qrow said, "We fight to keep the peace and it doesn't matter if our enemies are grimm or criminals like Torchwick."

"But that doesn't mean we have to kill them," Jaune shouted as he stood.

"What would you do if an enemy you beat came back and killed your little girlfriend," Qrow asked coldly. He watched the boy's face pale and started unscrewing his flask; it was always the same old story of little kids wanting to be heroes unable to realize that monsters other than grimm existed. Glancing at his daughter he said, "the only way to be safe is to get rid of the threat. That's something Raven and I learned far before we went to Beacon. It doesn't matter if that threat becomes an ally or if you kill them, but any threats have to be dealt with."

"Life isn't fair Jaune," Ruby said softly. There was only justice in the world if you made it and there was only fairness if you lived in a fairy tale. People were complicated messy and cruel making life all those things and more. Still, she could understand why he wanted to keep his sparkly golden view of the world. Sitting up she offered, "if you don't want to kill then that's fine. I'll do it for you."

"Ruby I can't-"

Cutting himself off he slumped down onto the bed as he struggled to understand reality. Huntsmen were supposed to be heroes, weren't they? His family had been huntsmen and they'd always been praised as heroes. Did that mean his family was wrong to believe in the good of humanity? Worse would he be forced to kill others just to complete a job? He didn't want to kill other people or watch them die; he wanted to be the hero. Looking at his leader he decided that he would prove that heroes existed. It was either that or abandon his ideology. Straightening he met his leader's gaze as he announced, "I'll prove it then. I'll show you that heroes exist!"

The declaration was met by silence until Qrow doubled over in laughter. Ignoring her dad, Ruby smiled. Her puppy really was a stubborn person; he'd denied their words and chosen to try and change what they believed instead. It was unbelievably arrogant, she completely approved. Part of her even wanted him to prove her wrong, however, she also knew that he wouldn't. One man could never stand up against the darkness of the world without being destroyed by it. She'd love watching him try though and she would always be there to do the things that he was unable to do.

"I look forward to it," Ruby said causing his eyes to light up. The glances exchanged by their teammates were all too noticeable to Ruby but she forced excitement in her voice as she said, "now we have a tournament to prepare for. Dad, can you help?"

Qrow smirked at the question suddenly making her three teammates uncomfortable. He was going to look forward to this far to much especially if the sadistic glint in his eyes was anything to go by. Almost matching his expression Ruby eyed her teammates before leaping off the bed to tackle them in a hug. Her team wasn't fixed or completely the same as before, but it was better than it had been. The protesting sounds from Blake were drowned out by Jaune whining while Pyrrha simply accepted the situation with far more grace than should be possible.

The rest of the week flew by, between training and team bonding all four were having more fun than they did at Beacon. And more specialized training too given that Qrow was a combat instructor before retiring from Signal to go back out in the field. After seeing Jaune fight Qrow had given the boy a sarcastic speech about how the enemy would be more likely to run away laughing then take him seriously. This had led to Jaune draining all his aura trying to land a hit on the chuckling man; he never did manage it. The way Qrow trained Jaune had both Pyrrha and Blake comparing him to Ruby more and more. But the man didn't neglect their training either; if he was being honest Qrow would admit that he loved beating his daughter's team into the ground.

Ruby herself had spent most of the time they had working on her semblance out in the woods, then when Blake questioned her on the progress the reaper had made, Ruby began to giggle before slipping away when the faunus turned her attention somewhere else. By the end of the week, Jaune's swordplay had improved enough that he could hold his own against Pyrrha without the use of her polarity. When Qrow mentioned that Blake should use dust with her semblance that morning Ruby had dragged her partner with her to Vale in hopes of getting Blake a new present.

Skipping into Nic's shop Ruby ducked under the thrown shoe that Pyrrha actually caught. Raising an eyebrow at her partner she smirked at the sheepish expression on the redhead's face. trading the shoe in Pyrrha's hand for the small bags of dust she was carrying, Ruby sighed when he teammate immediately made a beeline for the javelins across the store. Making a mental note to upgrade the older girl's weapon, she smiled in amusement. Tossing the shoe back to Nic she moved to lean against the counter.

"I need a new backup weapon," Ruby said trying to keep her voice happy. She missed her little dagger of death and destruction. It was weird to walk around without Thorn strapped to her thigh especially since she knew that having it would make her feel safer. Nic sighed reaching into the drawer of his counter to pull out her dagger the way her eyes lit up made it worth the annoyance of dealing with mute assassins.

"Neo brought it to me after the breach," Nic told her before handing over the weapon. Ruby hesitated for a second her fingers just shy of touching her dagger before wrapping her fingers around the hilt. Finally taking Thorn she relaxed at the feel of it in her hand it was like coming home. Nic smiled as his favorite customer toss the dagger in her hand as she happily played with her returned weapon. Lacing his fingers together the man spoke, "Neo traded your dagger for two new identities."

"For her and Roman," Ruby guessed and he nodded although he wouldn't be telling her all of their deal today. After all, he'd only told her half and the other part wasn't something the girl would approve off, or more like he didn't approve of her knowing.

"So still want that new weapon," he asked changing the subject. Ruby smirked with a nod; there was no such thing as having to many weapons. Reaching into the pocket of her pants the girl handed over the sketch she'd done of her newest desire. Nic looked over the sketch a wicked grin appearing on his face, "just like hairpins huh?"

"Yep," she told him the playful tone causing him to chuckle. Looking up he judged the length of her hair before matching her smirk.

"Just long enough for a bun," he mused as he looked back down at the sketch before stating, "and by the time the metal comes in and I start working your hair will be down to the middle of your back. You're becoming a walking armory."

"Weren't you," she asked and looked behind her as Pyrrha made her way over Ruby's smirk softened into a smile when she saw the older girl.

"How cute," Nic said seeing the fondness in her eyes, "does your team know about this latest purchase?"

"Nope," Ruby told him as Pyrrha offered a small smile to the man. Her smile became even more genuine when her partner stated, "dad doesn't even know that I've been using his money for all of this."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! The vytal festival starts next chapter yay. Anyway, what did you guys think of this chapter; I think I did pretty good with the team talk.  
Okay now for the hard part, my HP/FMA:B crossover. So I did think of a general summary which is:
> 
> What happens when a god decides to intervene in mortal lives just to get back at his brother; insanity and maybe just a little good. Aria Potter the fabled girl who lived was destined to live the life of a sacrificial lamb until she was sold her soul at the age of seven and was sent to another world to serve as entertainment. Taken in by the Homunculus Greed as his Alchemis she is trained by Issac Mcdougal who owed him a favor. Now after six years she's become one of the most powerful Alchemists in Amestris following in her teacher's footsteps as the new Ice Alchemist. It's too bad for her enemies when they summon her back to England and find a trained warrior rather than a meek tool.
> 
> Parings: Ling x Aria and Greed x Kimblee
> 
> So yeah that's what I've gotten for a Summary. The first 3-15 chapters are the Amestris Arc which then leads to the Goblet of Fire and Hogwarts Arc. Aria is 13 during the first Arc with chapters 1-2 being set up for the story. Also, I'm pretty sure that Greed, Kimblee, and Ling will follow her to Hogwarts which is all kinds of bad for her enemies. Anyway, that's the crossover summary please help me with a title because all I've got so far is Black Ice which isn't bad but I feel weird about it.
> 
> Anyway stay safe and have a good day
> 
> -Shyla


	31. Begining of the End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The start of the Vytal Festival, beginning of the end and all. I loved V3 mainly for the whole background scheme. Cinder was amazing. Anyway, the next chapter will include everyone's favorite birdman as well as Tai. Weird house husband Tai whose a fluffy puppy. So, what did you guys think of this chapter?
> 
> Stay safe and have a good day
> 
> \- Shyla

Leaning back in her seat, Weiss watched the match bellow with critical blue eyes. She was the only member of her team in attendance for Team RABN's fight. Her team was currently out getting food or preparing for their match right after the current fight. Keeping her hands in her lap she silently judged the different fighting styles between the two teams. It was amazing to see Pyrrha Nikos fight in person instead of on a tv, but Weiss couldn't take her eyes from Ruby. Her fellow leader was fighting the staff wielder however Weiss was sure that Ruby could defeat him at any time she wanted. Yet the girl chose to fight him holding back.

Did Ruby mean to simply play around the entire match or was she holding back for some other reason? Sighing, Weiss shifted in her seat as she glanced around the arena. In doing so she was able to notice the dark-haired man watching from the upper level. He was someone she'd never seen before, but it was easy for her to track his gaze to Ruby. Was this man connected to Ruby in some way, if so, then why was the girl pretending to be weaker then she actually was? Turning her gaze back to the younger girl, she noticed the playful smile on the girl's face as if she was treating this like a show.

Now she understood, Ruby was holding back to put on a good show. It made complete sense that the younger girl would do something like this given her habit of playing around. Team RABN would win the fight that was to be expected. Standing, she stalked from the arena as the fight raged behind her. She had no desire to watch her fellow leader treat this as nothing but a game. It would be annoying if nothing else. She wanted to see the girl who forced her to struggle then made her feel defeated not this disguise the girl wore.

Ruby ducked around the boy's staff with the screams of the audience ringing in the background. She couldn't even hide the amusement she felt at his attempts to hit her; the worse part was that she hadn't even used her semblance in the battle, but he was struggling. Bolin growled as the girl danced around him as if she could read his every move. As the end of his staff slammed into the icy ground, Ruby kicked him in the chest sending him stumbling back. Grabbing the end of his staff she pulled him in her direction and stabbed Thorn at his face. She wasn't even using her main weapon against him.

With wide eyes, the boy tilted his head to the side to avoid her attack. Much to her amusement, he stumbled away trying to avoid the barrage of strikes she unleashed. Snarling he swung his staff at her head only for his eyes to widen when she caught it easily. Seeing something green from the corner of her eye Ruby released his staff and jumped back. As his green-haired teammate landed in front of him, Ruby looked over at Jaune who winced under her glare but made no move to look away from her. Instead, his blue eyes narrowed as he refused to back down despite his failure. He'd been supposed to keep her occupied, while she took out the staff wielder.

"Really Jaune," she scolded, although there was no heat in her words, causing their opponents to smirk, they thought she was angry about Reese getting away, but really, she was annoyed at having her plan ruined. Still, it was nice to know that he was willing to glare at her. Shaking her head Ruby sighed and said "whatever it doesn't matter. Just stay back."

Jaune nodded but he knew she was more amused than annoyed stepping back, he sighed slightly never taking his eyes from the reaper as she turned her attention to their two opponents. Sheathing her dagger Ruby unfolded her scythe deciding to finally get serious. As she took off with a grin he shook his head fondly while the red petals of her semblance drifted to the ground behind her. The first round of the tournament had pitted them against the team from Haven and Jaune had been ordered by Ruby to look like the weak link in their team. The fact he actually was the weakest link on the team wasn't important right now. Tightening his grip on his sword he looked over to where Blake was dodging gunfire wondering if he should help, then she literally diced the boy's aura to pieces. Yeah, he wasn't needed there.

"Jaune," Ruby screamed as Bolin got past her and charged the blonde. Reacting on instinct Jaune blocked the strike with his shield before kicking the boy's legs out from under him in a move that Blake had drilled into his head. As the shocked staff wielder fell Jaune slammed the hilt of his sword into the boy's head dazing him long enough to drain his aura. When he looked up and saw Ruby's exasperated look he shrugged. They both knew that if she hadn't wanted the boy to get past her then she would have stopped him.

"What," he questioned, and she rolled her eyes. Seeing Reese charge at her back he pointed behind her and said, "there's still the one behind you."

Ruby sighed and spun, catching the other girl in the stomach with her scythe she pulled. She made the movement look so easy and effortless that Jaune was sure she wasn't even trying right now. Reese yelped as she was pulled from her hoverboard and sent rolling across the ground until coming to a stop in front of Jaune as she winced. Reaching down Jaune grabbed the girl's arm and drained her aura until it came into the red.

"Sorry," he told the girl while Port announced that Arslan was the only one from her team left.

It wasn't all that shocking that their team was dominating the battle. Ruby smiled looking over to where Pyrrha was fighting the other girl with ruthless efficiency. Raising an eyebrow, she watched the redhead throw her shield then get in close with her spear it was easy to see that there were no wasted movements in the redhead's actions. Hearing a groan, she looked over at the black-haired boy she'd been fighting and offered him her hand.

Bolin considered the girl for a second before taking her hand with a less than satisfied expression. He felt like she hadn't been trying to beat him; in fact, it was the same feeling he got when one of the older students spared against them. Given they were second years it was insulting that a first-year defeated two-quarters of their team so easily. When he was on his feet he said, "you guys did good, but don't think you'll win so easily next time."

"Don't think Arslan can beat us all," Ruby asked amused. He scoffed looking over at his leader sadly even if Arslan did beat Pyrrha it wasn't possible for her to win this fight alone. No matter what his leader thought.

"Pyrrha's beat Arslan several times," he said referring to the two girls lives fighting in minstrel, despite all the times they'd fought his leader had never come close to winning. Frowning he admitted, "Arslan's never won and I doubt today will be the day she does."

"That sucks," Ruby said pouting she kind of wanted to fight Arslan. When he looked over at her curiously, she smiled and explained, "I really wanted to fight some more."

"Battle junkie," Blake teased coming to stand at her leader side with a smirk. Jaune coughed to cover up his laugh as their leader pouted. It was true that Ruby was more likely to spend her time fighting than doing anything else unless it was cuddling. As Arslan's aura went into the red, Ruby sighed in disappointment.

"Let's have a rematch before you go back to Haven," she offered while her team was pronounced victorious. Sighing she smiled as she led her team from the stage.

"Sure kid," Bolin said wanting another chance to fight the girl. Throwing a glance toward his own team he sighed as Arslan stomped from the stage with an expression of pure anger. She'd wanted to win so badly that losing made her so enraged. Running a hand through his hair, he helped Reese off the ground before going to collect their other teammates.

Skipping onto the fairgrounds Ruby headed for the cotton candy stand the instant she got a chance. Right now, she was really in the mood for something sweet especially after fighting. Seeing her direction Pyrrha grabbed the small girl by her jacket before she could run off and get a sugar high. She had no desire to see what Ruby was like with sugar. Tugging her leader toward her she laid an arm around Ruby's shoulder to keep her from running off.

"Ruby your hyper enough without sugar," she said while the reaper pouted like a child. Tightening her grip just in case Ruby tried to get away, she said, "We came for food, not sweets."

Mumbling Ruby allowed Pyrrha to lead her along. If she was being honest the redhead was warm and she didn't mind being hugged like this. Still, she hated not being able to have cotton candy. It wasn't like she acted like Nora or anything when she ate sweets. Ruby frowned wondering when Qrow was going to get to the school; he said he'd be here either today or tomorrow. She just hoped he didn't destroy the courtyard like in the original timeline. There were after all easier ways to greet someone.

"Might be hard to eat without your wallet," Emerald pointed out as she came up to them. While Pyrrha and the others spun around and started talking to the girl, Ruby escaped her teammate and made her way over to Mercury.

"That's not weird at all," she said sarcastically as he sniffed the boot he was holding. Looking at the girl he grinned. The amusement in his eyes caused her to relax especially when she noticed the warmth in his eyes.

"Just testing the leather," he stated putting the shoe back.

"Well I guess I should be glad you didn't test it by biting the leather," she teased before becoming serious. If she remembered correctly then he and Emerald would be fighting Coco and Yatsuhashi in the doubles round. Still, she needed confirmation before she could decide anything. Smiling she asked, "you and Emerald are going to the doubles, round right?"

"Oh no how did you guess our master plan," he cried dramatically, and she giggled. The sound drew the other's attention, but she didn't care. Emerald looked back amused while Blake sighed and went to collect her leader who seemed far more amused than usual, however, she honestly wasn't even surprised by Ruby's insanity anymore.

"Sorry about Ruby," the cat faunus stated. Mercury waved her off the grin never leaving his face.

"She's fine, although if you could make her stop hunting me down for sparring matches that'd be great," he stated lying through his teeth. If not for Ruby's sparring matches he would have gotten far too bored to survive these weeks at Beacon. The girl was amusing and honestly, he didn't mind having her around for short amounts of time.

When Blake looked down at her with a glare Ruby stopped giggling and defended herself by saying, "it was only twice and that was before our team trip."

"So, who's going to the next round," Emerald asked Pyrrha and was surprised when the girl pointed at Ruby and Blake.

"They work well together and Ruby loves fighting," Jaune said at the same time an arm was slung over his shoulder by Cardin. Stumbling the blonde growled as the other boy used him as a prop.

"Our little rose is going through," he asked smirking at the annoyance that crossed Pyrrha's face in response to her anger he tightened his grip. The girl still didn't like him although he could see why at this very moment since she especially didn't like him around Jaune. Looking at the two people of the group he didn't know he introduced himself, "I'm Cardin Winchester a friend of Ruby's."

"This is Emerald and Mercury," Ruby said slipping away from Blakes hold to skip toward him. Returning his grin she asked, "how'd your team do?"

"We didn't enter," he said much to her disbelief. Seeing her curious look, he rolled his eyes and told her, "I decided to have my team sit out since Sky and Dove are still hurt."

"Really I thought they were doing alright," she said softly. A week should've been more than enough time for them to heal.

"Sky broke his arm again," he stated. It was getting ridiculous how clumsy the blue-haired boy was being. This time he'd tripped out the window while complaining about Dove winning their racing game. Then of course Dove had dived out after him and the rest was history. He was definitely blaming this set of injuries on a training accident too.

"That's nice and all but Cardin could you lean on something else," Jaune said catching his attention. The other boy was far too heavy to keep them both standing.

The second the blonde spoke up Ruby took the chance to vanish using her semblance. There had been far too many people around her and she wanted nothing to do with being surrounded. Reappearing with a scattering of petals at the edge of the growing crowd she frowned before glancing around. It was almost time for it to all come crashing down. Looking up at the tower of Beacon she sighed before turning her back on the tower. It was time she stopped considering what she should do.


	32. Snow Bird

"Sun," Ruby shouted before tackling the monkey faunus in a hug with a surprising force that threatened to send them both to the ground. Sun stumbled back caught off guard by the tiny human, but he still returned her hug without hesitation. Frowning Neptune grabbed his leader's shoulders to steady him while the other two members of their team watched in amusement. All four boys were fond of the girl although they still considered them a demon. Blake watched the interaction with a smile; it was always nice when Ruby turned her attention to someone outside their team. Noticing her, the blonde gently set Ruby on her feet before turning all his attention to Blake.

"Hey Blake," Sun greeted smiling. Blake returned the smile even as she felt her cheeks heat up in a blush at the warm greeting; he was always so happy. Sometimes she felt like she didn't deserve to be around someone like him.

"You guys were amazing, and Neptune was super funny," Ruby said catching the blue-haired boy by surprise. His fear of water was not funny it was completely rational and sane; there was nothing wrong with him at all. He didn't need to be tossed into the river to learn how to swim or anything else, there was no reason to look at him like he was an idiot.

"I know right, and we get to go on to the second round," Sun said exited as he tried to take attention off his friend. Ruby smirked and he winced when he saw the look on her face as his mood deflated. Dread filled his body as he realized that he might have to fight them. Pouting he asked, "you two are going on to the next round, aren't you?"

"Yep," Ruby said almost bouncing in place.

"And I actually thought we'd have a chance to win," Neptune grumbled as he realized that he had no chance. He already knew if they fought the girl they would lose it was a conclusion that he hated to admit. Mainly because Sun would hold back due to being fond of Ruby and if they were really unlucky then the battlefield would have water in it again. Shuddering at the thought of having to fight near water he didn't notice the amusement on the faces of his other two teammates.

"You might," Blake said lightly not actually believing it in the slightest. Ruby watched the banter with a smile; her plan for the two to get together was working well. Neptune caught her look and grinned in silent agreement.

"Hey Ruby," he started waiting until she looked over at him to continue, "isn't your dad supposed to be coming to Beacon today?"

The girl nodded happily; Qrow was supposed to arrive in less than two hours. Giving the blue-haired boy a fond smile, she said, "yep, I was about to go to the docking bay. Blake came to ask Sun on a date."

"Really!"

"Ruby!"

The two faunus snapped at the same time. Smiling innocently as Blake began to stutter, she ignored the embarrassed blush the feline wore as she tried to downplay Ruby's words. Staring at Sun with a look bordering on panic, she tried to literally wave away the idea of them going on a date only for the boy to grab her hands. Grinning brightly at her he didn't hesitate to lean closer as if the idea of them going on a date wasn't some strange thing that would never happen.

"I would love to go on a date! Do you want to go to a café," he asked brightly. Freezing the black-haired girl could do nothing but nod in agreement while Ruby smirked as Sun brought Blake out of her shell.

This was what she wanted. If her team was happy then she was happy. Watching the two she didn't notice when her smirk became a small smile but Neptune did. Tilting her head slightly she sighed before turning away and walking toward the docking bay. They didn't need her here anymore. Before she could fully escape a hand wrapped around her wrist keeping her from getting away. Turning she frowned as Neptune's blue eyes met her own. The knowing glint in his eyes didn't help her at all but she simply raised an eyebrow.

"I'll come with you," he said before looking at his blonde partner. Letting go of her wrist he took a step back putting distance between them as he offered her a small silent thank you for helping his partner. Sun would never have offered to take Blake on a date by himself. Straightening he held out his hand.

Glancing at their teammates for a moment she watched as Sun was teased by his teammates while Blake tried to resist covering her face out of embarrassment. She wanted her teammates to be happy and right now they were happy. While she appreciated Neptune's offer, she didn't really need him to escort her, however, she didn't know if refusing him was the right choice. Slumping in defeat she places her hand in his allowing him to lead her off toward the docking bay. It was weird that he suddenly wanted to be around her, but she had no idea for what reason.

The second they reached the courtyard and saw the chaos around them Ruby knew immediately that it had something to do with her dad. Meeting Mercury's eyes as he rushed past them, she dropped Neptune's hand and stalked toward the front of the crowd. She had a good idea of what was happening from the sounds of clashing steel her theory was confirmed. Hearing Neptune stumble behind her she twisted her hand reaching out to grab his wrist. Tugging him upward, she steadied the boy easily despite the pushing of the crowd around them.

"Thanks," he mumbled only for her grip on his wrist to tighten. Glancing down at her it was easy to notice the cold silver of her eyes was unreadable. He was slightly worried at the expression however she didn't hesitate to pull him toward Weiss.

"What's going on," Ruby asked Weiss coming to a stop beside the girl. She already knew what was happening, so she didn't wait for the girl to answer before looking at the fight and asking her next question, "why's my uncle fighting your sister?"

"Of course, he'd be related to you," Weiss complained although there was no anger in her tone.

Ruby smirked even though she couldn't call Qrow her dad in public she could still claim him as her family much to the man's amusement. Her eyes followed the fast-moving fighters the best she was able and determined that her team still had a long way to go before they'd be on the same level as them, although she could follow the battle easily. When Ironwood called Winter's name and stopped the fight Ruby pouted since he'd ruined her chance to see her dad using his scythe. Rolling her eyes as Neptune sighed in relief, she released his wrist and started toward her dad.

Leaping forward Ruby wrapped her arms around her dad in a hug that he was already expecting. Qrow caught the reaper easily and ignored the surprised look James and Winter wore at the way he spun her around. If he wanted to hug his daughter, he would hug her; they had no say in the matter. Ruby laughed the sound filling the air before tapering to a shriek as he tossed her in the air. Seeing her eyes widen he smirked before catching her and allowing the girl to hang off his shoulder.

Pressing her face against his neck she hugged him tightly ignoring the whispers and coos of the students around them. Most of them knew her as the brilliant prodigy first year, they'd never seen her smiling or laughing like this. Keeping a gentle arm around her waist, he glanced at Ozpin's approaching form before gently moving to sit her on the ground. The annoyed expression that crossed her face was all the warning he had before she was sending a glare at James. Tapping her nose before she could assault the general, he grinned at her.

"That was so cool," Ruby said. Smiling she leaned toward him when he laid a hand on her head to ruffle her hair. The smile on her face was bright and happy as she ordered, "you've got to teach me how to do the shockwave thing with Thorn."

Chuckling he wondered what kind of chaos she would cause once she got stronger. Ignoring the wary look Winter was sending him he said, "maybe later or you could figure it out yourself."

"But that wouldn't be as much fun," Ruby protested she wanted to spend time training with just her dad. She hadn't seen him since they left Patch a week ago, they still called each other every other night but it wasn't the same.

"Qrow what are you doing here," James asked interrupting the reunion. Qrow's eyes hardened as he pushed Ruby slightly behind him in an action that clearly stated what he thought of the general around his daughter. James may not hurt a child but he also brought a fleet of ships into Vale airspace and that wasn't the smartest move; such a paranoid person could be capable of anything. Qrow didn't want him near his daughter until he figured out what the man's agenda was.

"I could ask you the same thing," Qrow said coldly narrowing his eyes.

"Qrow I-"

James started only to be cut off by Ozpin laying a hand on his shoulder. The action was enough to make both men reconsider starting a fight in the courtyard. Laying a hand on Ruby's shoulder he nodded to his boss before turning his full attention to his daughter. An action that caused Ironwood to scowl at the lack of respect he showed the man. In his mind, Qrow had no respect for the chain of command much less the sense to stop getting in fights with the military.

"I'll stop by your dorm later kid," Qrow told her as a soft smile appeared on his face. Winter froze the reprimand on her lips refusing to be spoken; she'd never seen that expression on his face before. Turning away from him she glanced toward her sister before stiffening as she put back on the mask of a good little soldier. Frowning as Ozpin called for him to follow Qrow took the time to mutter, "I think I'm in trouble."

"I would think so too," Ruby teased before motioning to the destroyed area. Following her action, he smirked it was fun to cause chaos at Beacon again. Ruffling her hair one last time he started to follow Ozpin and the others up to the tower.

"Your attitude makes more sense now," Weiss said coming to stand beside the younger girl. Ruby grinned at the heiress with a playful expression that made the white-haired girl's lips twitch.

"I'll admit I didn't think this was how my day would go when I offered to escort you," Neptune admitted once he'd finished hiding from her dad. Feeling the urge to tease the older boy she turned her attention to him as Weiss moved to meet Yang.

"Just how did you figure it would go," she asked amusement in her voice.

"I kind of figured I'd at least get a date out of it," he said with a smirk just short of arrogant. He was lying she could tell because he seemed to force himself to say the words.

"Cute," she said much to his shock. Seeing a faint shade of pink stretch across his cheeks, she took a moment to study him. Neptune had always just been Sun's partner to her; she hadn't really considered him beyond hat. Maybe she should; he was after all another potential asset and she was interested in why he felt the need to flirt with her rather than simply have a conversation. Deciding to focus on him later she frowned but didn't move when Yang drew her into a hug and started stressing about the upcoming family meeting.

(Tyrian)

Today was the day Cora was finally taking down her barrier for the first time since its creation, he could tell that she was nervous. Hence why he'd been watching her for the last hour. The blonde was staring at the icy hurricane with doubt in her eyes as she hesitated. There was so much riding on this, he knew that, however, he wanted to get back to his queen. He longed to return home despite how fond he'd became of Cora and her daughter.

Reaching out slowly Cora laid a trembling hand on the wall. She could feel her power intertwined with the hurricane, so she tugged. He expected the storm to simply disappear, instead, it seemed to shiver before lashing out. Magic was volatile, unpredictable, he knew that after living with his queen all these years, it was why he noticed when her own magic attacked her. The icy storm seemed to condense and impact her chest seconds before her feet were leaving the ground. Cursing darkly, he shifted into her path.

The instant he touched her it felt like his limbs were freezing, gritting his teeth, he wrapped his arms around her body. Stumbling, the faunus held her tightly as he stared down at the sunlight colored flames surrounding her eyes. He barely noticed when the ice crept along her skin while his tail subconsciously wrapped around her waist. Kneeling slowly, he did notice how dark her eyes were when they opened. Except they weren't brown but a metallic gold that seemed to blaze as she looked up at him.

"Gold looks good on you."

Blinking at his words, she looked away much to his amusement. Light pink dusted her cheeks catching his attention and causing a smirk to drift across his lips. At least now he knew that she wasn't immune to his presence. Feeling her shift, he allowed her to escape from his grasp despite the fact his tail stayed wrapped around her waist. The slightly annoyed glance she gave his tail was all the reaction she gave to his possessive display.

(Ruby)

Tai shifted uncomfortably from his seat under his daughter's gaze much to Qrow's amusement. Ruby sat across from him while Yang bounced nervously on her sister's bed. Ruby's team had taken an evening trip to the training room so the family could have some much-needed privacy. That had been Pyrrha's idea since both her puppy and kitten wanted to be there for moral support. Qrow watched it all from his spot near the door ready to catch any of the three who made a run for it since their family was prone to trying to run away. So far Tai seemed the one most likely to bolt.

"Okay, can somebody just talk already," Yang told them unable to take the awkward silence any longer, instead of actually talking all three of the others turned to look at her as if she volunteered to go first. Paling she shifted slightly and turned away from them broadcasting her unwillingness to go first in their discussion. Rolling her eyes Ruby focused all her attention on Tai who seemed to find his shoes very interesting. Given that they were a bright orange fashion nightmare she could see why he would pay attention to them.

"So how'd your mission go papa," she asked aiming the question at Tai who blinked in surprise before letting out a cooing noise that made her uncomfortable. Qrow smirked at as his friend latched onto the lifeline she'd thrown him like a drowning man in the middle of the ocean. It seemed his daughter was unwilling to let either of them go without a fight; it was something he was both grateful to and a little worried about. Ruby listened to him recount his mission with a small smile unaware of her father studying her. Hearing a scroll ring all three once again looked over at Yang who was blushing while looking at the screen.

"Sorry," the blonde mumbled before answering the call from Weiss.

It only took a few moments for her to jump off the bed and shoot out the door still yelling something about late-night pancakes, and team bonding that she was late for. Ruby looked after her sister in amusement at how easily the girl's priorities shifted. She could understand the devotion to her team, but the second Weiss called her name Yang would drop everything and go to the girl's side. It was strangely adorable that the blonde valued Weiss so highly when in the previous timeline they were nothing more than friends. Still, she found the smitten actions of her sister causing her to compare the blonde to a golden retriever. Maybe she needed a pet; it might stop the animal comparisons.

Watching his blonde daughter leave, Tai found himself comparing Yang's action to his own during his time courting Raven. From the smirk on Qrow's face he was thinking the same thing; resisting the urge to flush scarlet he huffed before turning his attention back to Ruby. There were many things he regretted about his actions following Summer's death especially considering his team leader would murder him if she ever found out about his actions. He'd been so scared of losing Ruby that he'd ignored the fact Qrow had lost Summer too.

He still didn't regret making Ruby his daughter. The girl was brilliant and compassionate. She was the best part of both his teammates. It was true that he could have handled everything much better after Summer died, however, his choice had led to him raising a beautiful amazing daughter who would go on to become one of the strongest huntresses to ever live. He wouldn't change anything despite how much pain Summer was going to put him through when he died.

"I'm sorry," Tai said finally catching her off guard and drawing her attention. The curious and wary look in her eyes was enough to make him slump in defeat as he admitted, "we'd just lost Summer and I was so afraid that I'd lose the last piece of her left that I stole you from Qrow. I just-"

"Tai shut up," Qrow ordered before the man could start sobbing. From the way, the blonde was talking it was only a matter of time until he curled up and cried into the pillow. Wincing a bit he rolled his eyes before saying, "we don't blame you, idiot."

"Well I blame myself," Tai shot back as tears came to his eyes. Qrow sighed in exasperation, how could his best friend go from sarcastic grimm slayer to whiny crybaby? It just didn't seem possible, but it was, and the whole reason was the giant soft spot the blonde had for Ruby and Yang. He also had a soft spot for his wife who was currently running around the wilds of Anima playing bandit queen.

Ruby tensed discomfort flashing through her gaze. Twitching slightly, she threw a glance at her dad who had no idea what to do. From the exasperated look on his face, he was at a loss as well; it was slightly annoying that he was leaving her to deal with Tai. Shifting nervously, she considered running away but she knew her dad wouldn't allow her to run. In fact, she wouldn't allow herself to run. This was the conversation she envisioned. Eventually, Tai was going to start crying like a little baby and they would have to deal with it.

"Thank you," Ruby said blurting out the first thing to come to mind so that he would stop crying. she hated listening to him cry or whine. It was terrifying when Tai started crying and she had no idea how to deal with tears. She hated when those that belonged to her were sad or even just a little upset. When he looked up at her in shock tears frozen in their place, she hurried to finish speaking, "you raised me better than most would have and treated me like I was actually your flesh and blood, so thank you."

Seeing him tense she readied herself as Tai lunged forward wrapping his arms around her tightly. Ruby returned the hug with just as much force hoping that he would stop crying soon. Throwing a glance at her dad she noticed the small smile on his face as he leaned back and watched the two settles in to talk. Crossing his arms, the man wondered how much things would have changed if Summer hadn't died. For one thing, he was sure that she would have encouraged Ruby's possessiveness. He missed Summer and wished against all logic that Raven could be here with them even if she was complicated. He wanted things to be easy for both him and his family, yet as he watched Ruby comfort Tai, he had to ask himself if life would be any better if things were different?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys I finally posted a chapter Yay. Anyway, what did you guys think of this chapter? The next chapter will be a little about Ruby's plans and I'm hoping to start the battle of Beacon by chapter 35. Cardin will be meeting Adam before Ruby's does just like in the original.
> 
> stay safe and have a good day
> 
> \- Shyla


	34. Evil Looked Good

Trying on her gloves the next morning Ruby wasn't at all surprised that both her fathers had ended up cuddled on the floor like puppies. Tai had somehow, not that she was surprised, managed to wrap himself around Qrow in the middle of the night reminding her of a snake. He had a horrible cuddle habit that he'd passed onto Yang although she hadn't been spared either. Looking over at her still sleeping team she checked the time on her scroll once more before sighing in relief. It was five in the morning and she had at least two hours before any of them woke up. As she flexed her hands causing light to reflect off the thin metal plates covering her palms, she hummed in thought.

This early Cardin would most likely be meditating in the training room. She knew that he was happy to sit in a single room and try to clear his mind. At the most however it would only lead to him stewing in his thoughts as he tried to think through his conflicting thoughts. Sensing the emotions of other people had always made it hard for him to realize what his own emotions were. It took an unbelievable amount of control for him to be able to control his emotions while being bombarded by those of other people.

Shrugging on her jacket she slipped from the room without waking them which at this point was far easier than she would have liked. Maybe she should start attacking them in their sleep to make them more aware. Walking down the hall and entering the training room her team always used she blinked when she saw Cardin waiting on her. He'd already started his daily meditation and she was more amused than anything else. He'd never really been good at meditation; his thoughts ran too wild and from the twitching of his eye it wouldn't take long until he gave.

"Still no luck," she asked stopping in front of the boy. His eyes opened and he looked up at her with resigned defeat it had taken years for him to even get to the level where he could sit still for more than an hour.

"No, I doubt meditation is supposed to make you even more stressed than when you started," he told her and took the hand she offered before gently tugging her down. Laying down beside him Ruby giggled at the repeated conversation that they'd had several times. Rolling his eyes at her amusement he asked, "what do you think of the tournament so far?"

"I like the fighting part," she said smirking while he threw his head back and laughed; she'd always been the more violent of the two of them. Although she mostly faught because she wanted to have fun while he did it to solve problems. When he finished laughing, she asked, "how's your team doing? Are they still upset about not being able to compete?"

"No," he said. They had been at first but after he upped their training they'd decided to stop commenting on his choices. Grinning at her without even an ounce of remorse he said, "their just happy I stopped beating them into the ground during training."

"I would be too," she mumbled feeling bad for the three boys. Resting her head on her hands she looked up at the rafters with dark eyes. Soon this tournament would come to an end and the entire world would be thrown into chaos.

"Are you sure about this," he asked noticing the expression on her face. Watching her closely he said, "we're letting hundreds die."

She knew that standing by and doing nothing during the Fall would allow people to die. Even letting the Fall happen was the same as gift wrapping civilians and giving them to the grimm. She felt bad about planning to allow them to die but she also knew this was the best way to get what she wanted; she needed the world in chaos. Those people that died weren't going to be important to her, after all she'd already taken lengths to ensure the survival of those she cared for. Still, she couldn't shake the discomfort at turning her back on them.

"Is that morality in your voice," she asked deciding to joke instead.

"Hardly, but do you actually thing that when it comes down to it you'll be able to stand there and do nothing," he asked sounding mildly amused by the idea of him having morality. Well in the sense of a normal person at least; both their ideas of morality were more than a little jaded.

"I won't be doing nothing, I'll be recruiting," she said before pushing herself up. Patting her pockets for her scroll she frowned when she found it.

"Roman and Neo," he guessed gaining an idle nod in return. She'd talked about the two enough that he knew she wanted them; at this point he was would have questioned if her crush was to blame but the answer to that was obvious.

"Along with a few others."

"My team and I will go to Atlas once Beacon falls, do you have a plan yet," he asked as she placed her scroll on the ground. Bringing up a photo of Adam Taurus from the police reports she turned it on projection mode.

"We both know I'm horrible at plans," she admitted causing him to chuckle.

"Oh I know, I still remember the time you tried to throw a birthday party for me only to realize you'd forgotten what day it was on."

"I remembered the month," she snapped refusing to admit that her face was turning scarlet at his teasing.

"It was very impressive," he said although the tone suggested that it really wasn't. Especially since the only impressive thing about the party was her accidentally blowing up his cake.

"Your horrible," she hissed as he began laughing at her. Rolling her eyes she ignored the warm feeling from his laughter in favor of punching him in the arm just hard enough to get his attention. Pointing to the image saying, "back to the point. I have put together a basic plan for the Fall. So, when the chaos starts, you're going after Blake if memory serves Adam will be there. Your job is to get her out of there and nothing else. Do not try to fight him."

Adam Taurus the leader of the Vale branch of the White Fang according to Blake was proficient in Iaido and given that the man's weapon was a katana he was willing to believe the cat. The man was supposed to be one of the strongest members of the White Fang. It made the mace wielder want to kill him. To him, the faunus organization was nothing more than a group of murderers with no regard for those that were caught in the crossfire of their attacks. They just didn't care who they harmed in their quest for equality.

He wanted the White Fang to be torn apart bit by bit until they were nothing, but he was mature enough to put the blame where it belonged. Besides his revenge had been fulfilled years ago and he had no desire to destroy her plans simply because he hated faunus. And he did hate the faunus more than anything else in the world. It was just easier to hide his hate now that he was older. There was also the fact that from the expression on her face he was pretty sure she wanted to recruit the faunus.

"Right, and you'll be going after Roman and Neo, along with others," he said with a fond smirk. He doubted that she would ever quit trying to win over dangerous people.

"Yep, your team will be-"

"Covering the evac point I know."

"Cinder during this time will be recovering the Fall Maiden power," she said softly. She still had no idea if allowing the woman to become the Fall Maiden was the best decision, however, she had no desire to get in her way. At this point, there was no telling if she would be strong enough to stop Cinder if they faught. There was a possibility she could defeat Cinder, yet by fighting her she would only cement herself as an enemy. By standing aside and allowing her to become a Maiden, she left the door open for an alliance later on.

"Think you've gotten on her good side," he asked bringing up the issue that they were both worried about. Cinder was a woman who knew full well what she wanted and would do anything to accomplish that goal. They needed her to like Ruby enough to think about an alliance before they brough it up.

"I'll be meeting her team tonight at the fairgrounds near the noodle stand. Be nearby and check their emotions," she ordered causing him to smirk. It was nice when she got feisty enough to give orders instead of catering to the whims of her team.

"Right, now about Team WYVN, they should be on the front lines, depending on how fast you can shut down the robots that could get messy," he warned. Losing any of Weiss's team would be horrible and that was discounting the fact that they were useful. He cared more about the fact that Ruby would blame herself if any of them died.

"Don't worry so much," she said more to assure herself than him. Deciding to move on before she could start doubting herself, she said, "now about the part we're dreading-"

"Ozpin needs to die," he finished as she brought up a photo of the man himself. It was unfortunate but the man held too much influence and would never go along with Ruby's plans. The only option was to kill him opening a power vacuum that they could exploit.

"The other professors will be able to pick up the slack and keep Vale together once he's gone but the Kingdom will still be divided giving me enough time to put together a power base," she said although there was a bit of regret in her voice. Ozpin could make a very powerful ally, but he was too set in his beliefs she saw it every time they talked. He held far too much conviction in his goals to agree to her plans.

"There's also the dragon," he said holding a fair bit of annoyance in his voice as he shook his head mumbling, "We can't forget the fucking dragon."

"Originally Ruby was able to turn it to stone," she whispered having no idea how to actually do that. If it was triggered by the death of Pyrrha then there was no way it would be happening this time. Her team was going to be...well not safe, but definitely not around a dragon.

"How? All we've got is glowy eyes," he asked knowing just as she did that they had no idea how to deal with a dragon much less how to turn one to stone.

"Don't worry about it, I'll know what to do when it happens," she said with less honesty that a thriving politician.

"Liar," he said with an amused huff.

"True," she admitted.

"Are-"

"This is what I want...no this is what I need. I don't want Beacon to fall, nor do I want Ozpin to die, but we have to do what's best for us. Besides, do you honestly see Ozpin believing me," she said knowing that if she went to Ozpin with what she knew he wouldn't believe her. Worse he might decide that she knew too much and count her among his enemies. No, it was far better that he died now before he could become a problem.

"Don't try to manipulate me," he snapped. Causing her to blink. Going back over her words she frowned realizing that she had just tried to manipulate him.

"Fine," she said with a small nod. He hated it when she tried to sway him during their little talks knowing that the only option was, to tell the truth. Shifting to face him fully she stated, "This is what I want. I spent my first life with nothing and now I want the world. I'm a selfish bitch."

"That's my girl," he praised reaching out to ruffle her hair before she could stop him. Slapping his hand away she scowled at him wondering if it would be better to simply kick him. From the smirk on his face, he knew exactly what she was thinking. Sighing, because kicking him would only cheer him on, she grabbed her scroll and stood slowly. Stretching, she didn't notice him chuckling as she slipped her scroll into her pocket. He couldn't wait to see what kind of show she put on today. Grinning he said, "Good luck with your match today."

"I don't need luck," she stated while rolling her eyes. These matches were nothing but a farce leading up to the chaos to come. She would take full advantage of this time.

"I know."

Later that day standing across from team FNKY in the arena Ruby was grinning; she could clearly see that luck wouldn't be needed at all in this fight. The fact that she already knew their fighting styles was a huge advantage although this did make her wonder if she would be fighting Mercury in the final round instead of Yang; she doubted Cinder would risk her personal approval of Mercury getting the way of the woman's goals. Even as their opponents tried to get under their skin she said nothing instead she studied the two closely. Eyeing the trumpet using boy she wondered how fast his soundwaves could move she also wondered how many instruments he knew how to play. She'd been thinking of learning to play an instrument just to have some musical talent since she couldn't really sing to save her life. As Dr. Oobleck called for the match to start, Ruby burst into rose petals while Blake jumped forward as a distraction.

Slipping behind the older boy she lashed out kicking at his back before he could realize she was behind him. Her personal challenge for this match was not using her weapon. She was going to fight him without her weapons just to see if it was possible to win. Flynt yelped in pain as he was sent skidding across the ground before he managed to roll to a stop. Ruby smirked lowering her leg from when she'd kicked him away before shifting to rest a hand on her hip. It seemed his sound waves were not as fast as she was meaning he'd already lost. As he moved to stand again Ruby raised an eyebrow, but the playful smirk never left her lips. Neon seeing her leaders condition rushed the small reaper hoping to protect her leader.

Ruby watched in amusement as the girl skated toward her; part of her questioned if skates were really a good idea on the battlefield. Neon saw the girl's eyes shift behind her just before she felt something wrap around her waist and pull her back. Ruby returned her attention to the boy who had activated his semblance not that it would help him. Activating her semblance again she almost giggled when he immediately looked behind him in hoping to stop her before she could attack. Instead, she simply stopped in front of him more amused than anything else.

"How many instruments can you play," she asked startling the boy.

Stumbling away from her, the boy's eyes widened when he finally noticed her. Staring at the girl his hand twitched on his weapon as he tried to process her actions. All it led to was him not noticing his teammate until Neon slammed into his back causing him to fall right into the kick Ruby sent at his chest. Blake looked over at her leader and stepped out of range when she saw the girl vanish.

Flynt groaned before looking at his teammate in shock. He hadn't thought Neon would be beaten so easily and it was hard to keep his hand from shaking as he gently laid a hand on her shoulder. The pasted out the girl was the fastest person on his team and although she wasn't the strongest, she wasn't the weakest either. There was no way she should've been beaten so easily. Tensing when he noticed that Ruby had vanished, he turned his attention to her teammate. Glaring at the bow wearing girl he raised his trumpet to his lips and activated his semblance.

Smirking Ruby didn't hesitate to appear behind him the second he did so. The gasp that left his lips when she slammed her palm into his back causing him to stumble forward as she reapeared in front of him. Kicking Flynt in the chest she caught his trumpet as he fell back struggling to breathe. As Dr. Oobleck called the match she grinned; her ability to fight without a weapon was improving. Mercury winced he knew how hard the girl could kick and while not as damaging as his own attacks it still hurt a lot. He watched as she helped up her opponent and wondered what it would be like to have her stop holding back and actually fight. War was going to come to Beacon, he had to wonder what she would do when it did.

"Sorry about that," Ruby said offering Flynt his weapon. He shook his head with a grin as he took it.

"Don't be it was a good fight," he said causing her to twitch. She'd managed to beat him without using her weapon. Seeing him narrow his eyes then frown she resisted the urge to tease him as he said, "although I wish your teammate hadn't used Neon as a distraction."

Tilting her head, she gave a false apology saying, "sorry about that, Blake was acting under my orders so it's actually my fault."

Flynt's eyes narrowed as he spotted the obvious lie although he didn't know if it was the apology itself or simply her taking the blame. Deciding to let it be he walked over to Neon and picked her up slinging the girl over his shoulder. Mentally he reminded himself to have her eat more during mealtimes; she weighed far less than she should have.

"Don't worry about it," he said before carrying Neon from the arena. Looking over at Blake who was fidgeting anxiously Ruby raised an eyebrow and waited it didn't take long for Blake to twitch guiltily.

"My instincts didn't like her," Blake said finally and Ruby giggled before leading her teammate from the stage. Her teammate had just decided to go all out against another cat faunus simply because she didn't like her. In the audience, Tai looked over at Qrow with a small frown. During the fight, he'd been comparing Ruby's fighting style to his friends and what he found worried him.

"She has your anger," he said softly and Qrow smirked before shaking his head.

"Nope, that's all her mother," he protested as he remembered Summer's overwhelming rage. His amazing leader was bright and happy until someone threatened what belonged to her. Seeing the doubtful expression on Tai's face, he said, "remember that time you got hurt during a training mission and she went psycho on those poor little bandits."

Tai blushed at being reminded of his small failure in the field; back then he hadn't been nearly as willing to fight human opponents as the rest of his team was. Now he was far more willing to kill then he used to be. He was the strongest in physical power of their old team making him one of the most dangerous bounty hunters to ever become a Huntsman. Pouting the blonde said, "I hate to think how bad she'll be once she starts dating."

"I pity her partners," he stated. He might be her father, but he knew that she would make her own choices; she was an amazing huntress. That didn't mean however that he wasn't going to terrify whoever she chose to love.

"So, what are you going to do about the tribe," Tai asked knowing it was only a matter of time until Qrow had to tell Ruby about their family history. Qrow took out his flask and unscrewed it as he realized that soon Ruby would have to sit down and have a real conversation with her aunt.

"Nothing, Raven has a few more years until Ruby comes of age, so I don't have to worry about it right now," he said taking a long drink. The longer Raven didn't know about Ruby's relation to them the better.

"True, she's going to be angry when she finds out," Tai cautioned and declined the flask when Qrow offered it. They both knew the complicated relationship Qrow had with his sister; it wasn't a lie to say that Tai was the one she actually talked to without snapping at. Given that they'd been married for years it wasn't that shocking.

"Which one," Qrow asked but Tai didn't answer he was too busy watching Yang and Weiss's match. Qrow let the subject drop and turned to watch the fight. Raven would be enraged that he'd kept Ruby a secret and his daughter would be angry that he hadn't told her she had a chance to lead a tribe of bandits.

Later that evening completely, mostly, unaware that her father was keeping secrets, Ruby walked through the festival grounds a wide grin on her face. It'd been a few hours since their fight and she still felt hyper. The amount of cotton candy Blake had allowed her to eat didn't help much either given that she'd simply gotten more the moment her kitten looked away. She'd just managed to ditch her teammates so she could drift around undisturbed. In a few moments, she would conveniently run into Cinder's group with Cardin in range to read their emotions. Spotting the indigo eyed teen making small talk with his teammates she made a mental note to copy his action and take her team out for dinner. All such thoughts dove out the window when she finally spotted Cinder's team.

Emerald had just picked up her chopsticks to eat when Mercury began to chuckle; not the good kind of chuckling either but the evil I know something you don't kind. Following his gaze, she saw Ruby literally skipping around without a care in the world. Ignoring the rush of discomfort, she felt at seeing someone so happy she turned her attention to him asking, "what's so funny?"

"This is what she's like after getting cotton candy," he explained grinning although the expression was more wicked than happy. Watching the younger girl closely he spotted the exact moment her eyes landed on them since they filled with mischief that matched his own. Bracing himself silently he said, "I just find it amusing that her team is afraid of her on a sugar high yet none of them bothered to stop her from having it. Also, she's coming in this direction."

Spinning around Emerald paled, she didn't like dealing with happy people and now there was a happy person on a sugar high. There might've also been a bit of jealousy from how attached both her lovers seemed to be to this girl, but she would never admit that fact. Bypassing Emerald, who was very thankful to go unnoticed, completely Ruby launched herself at Mercury who laughed. Instinctively he caught the girl but wasn't expecting the force from her tackle. Emerald watched them fall and burst out laughing much to Cinder's amusement.

Straightening Neo frowned but quickly hid the expression. She didn't like Cinder or her pets, but Ruby was clearly plotting something. At least she hoped the girl was plotting something, if not then she was vaguely sure the girl would simply be joining Cinder's harem. If that happened, then she and Roman would never be able to escape. Seeing the dagger attached to her thigh, she had to wonder if Nic had told the girl about their deal. From the wink, the small huntress sent in her direction it was possible that he had.

"Ruby, I know I'm irresistible, but can you let go," he said causing the girl to raise an eyebrow. Considering his words, she felt a smirk drift across her lips before she patted him on the cheek as if she was consoling him. If only she was two years older, and if her dads weren't at this school just waiting for a chance to turn into protective pests. Mercury was attractive, so was every person on his team. Bursting into petals she appeared a foot away offering him a hand.

"Hello Miss Rose," Cinder said. Watching as Ruby pulled Mercury up easily she noticed the girl glance at Emerald before turning a warm smile in her direction.

"You should just call me Ruby everyone else does," she told her while Emerald watched curiously. Cinder narrowed her eyes wondering what the girl's plan was. Why would she keep approaching them? And why did it feel so right to have the girl around? Every time the younger girl was around, she just felt warm. It wasn't a stretch to compare Ruby to the sun although she did wonder if the girl even knew what she was doing.

"Well, then Ruby, would you like to join us for lunch," Cinder asked.

Honestly, she would kill to have Cinder say her name in that tone for the rest of her life. Stomping down the heat rising in her cheeks, she nodded in response to the woman's offer. She did not need a new crush right now especially since Cinder was supposed to be evil. But evil looked so good too. The memory of the woman dressed in her black catsuit came to mind before she could stop it. Gods what was wrong with her? Cinder was a villain, a hot one, but still a villain. She really needed better priorities. Looking away from the woman before she could say something stupid, she caught sight of Cardin choking from his own laughter. She was completely doomed, wasn't she?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay chapter 33 progress. What did you guys think of this chapter? I'm listening to the v7 soundtrack as I publish this. So far I have to say that Hero has been my favorite. 
> 
> the next chapter will have Ruby's reaction to Pyrrha getting chosen as the new maiden. 
> 
> stay safe and have a good day 
> 
> -Shyla


	35. Maiden

"I hate you."

The words fell from her lips with the grace of a raging Ursa but Cardin simply chuckled. He didn't care that she was upset with his teasing not when he was far too amused with her to show mercy. Sitting in the little café that she'd picked out he looked so out of place in the armor he refused to take off especially compared to the simple jacket and jeans she was wearing. Today was the beginning of the finals also known as the day Yang would be manipulated by Emerald's semblance into attacking a downed opponent.

She wasn't worried about her sister. Yang would be fine; she wouldn't meet Adam during the fall causing her to lose an arm. She would be completely fine because she would be with Weiss. The person in the most dangerous would be either Pyrrha who was a prospective maiden or Blake who had her old partner after her. Both of her teammates would be safe, she would do anything to ensure that they survived. They were meant to be safe and sound so she would fight to keep them that way. Cardin would be protecting Blake for her. She trusted him to keep the faunus safe.

"On the upside, your plan worked," he said although she could feel the smirk in his voice. Taking a sip of her tea, she tried to ignore the rush of anger that she felt. Her hidden annoyance didn't change stop him from saying, "pretty sure both Cinder and Mercury have a soft spot for you."

Oh yes, her plan went well. It was truly the best thing that she'd ever thought of. It wasn't like she'd managed to grow fond of them as well. They were amazing and strong. Having them on her side was a boon, so why did she feel so uncomfortable? From the smirk on his face, Cardin knew what she was thinking as well. She didn't need to care about them; they were supposed to be her enemies. They were going to cause the fall of Beacon. She shouldn't care about them. However, she did. Somewhere along the way, it turned from manipulating her way into their hearts to caring about them. They were hers.

"Don't you dare," she warned when she noticed the smirk on his face. Ignoring her warning entirely he didn't hesitate to lean forward.

"On the downside, you have a new crush," he teased.

It wasn't a crush, she just admired how attractive Cinder was. It was weird; the fact she was attracted to dangerous people. Roman was a thief and Neo was just trouble, both were not people that she should fall for. To make things worse, Cinder was the woman who stole the Maiden's power for herself. She was even more dangerous than Roman and Neo, so why? All it took was having her name said in that tone and she turned into nothing but a hormonal teen. It wasn't fair.

"I hate you," she repeated although it was aimed more at herself than him.

"Love you too," he said. He knew that she was confused by her own emotions. It wasn't that hard to see for an empath. Ruby had always been willing to dive into anything and more than that she'd never wanted love. Even during the months, they spent dating she gave him everything without asking for anything in return. That's why her crush on Roman had come as such a shock; he'd never heard her gush about someone as much as she did the thief. When she mentioned Neo as well, he'd almost lost his mind. He'd never felt her emotions so clearly as he did at that moment; now with Cinder, he could feel the same thing. He knew the reason, people like those three could stand beside her without fear. They were strong enough to keep up with her and he wasn't. Watching her sip her tea, he asked, "now what's next."

"Ozpin asks Pyrrha to become the Fall Maiden," she admitted. It was what got Pyrrha killed in the original timeline. Her partner was too good a person to simply walk away when the world needed her. Ozpin took advantage of that.

"You can't kill him," he said cutting off her murderous thoughts before they could fully form. Jaune was right, she cared too much for the people around her but never for herself. She wanted the world only to give it to the people that mattered to her. He refused to let her do something foolish just because she lost her temper. Narrowing his gaze when her lips pulled into a frown he said, "Don't pout, besides going up to his office and throwing a knife at him would be foolish. Keep your cards close to your chest. Don't let your temper overrule your common sense."

"That wouldn't happen," she protested only to wince when his eyes sharpened.

"Don't you dare pretend that you're not controlled by your emotions," he stated although there was no anger in his tone. He knew that she was stronger than him, however, her temper was something she just couldn't control. That was why she killed a White Fang member after all.

Falling silent she looked away from him. It wasn't her fault, not really. This life hadn't given her a reason to learn to control her emotions or stifle what she felt. Even now she didn't want to hide who she was behind a cold façade. She wanted to smile and be happy without fearing what would happen. She wanted to hold the world in her hands and know that it was hers just to say that it was hers. The people in her life cared about her and she would fight for them without hesitation. Smiling at the waiter who brought out the chocolate cake she'd ordered, the reaper never noticed the dark glint in Cardin's eyes nor the way he glared out the window.

(Tyrian)

They'd found a patch of wildflowers. For him it was nothing special, just a bunch of plants however for Eliza they were amazing. The girl had been running around trying to see every single flower since the second they arrived. He supposed it was normal given that she'd never seen flowers like this before but simply watching her was exhausting. She had far too much energy. Even Cora was exhausted although that might have more to do with her constant flinching every time a loud noise was heard. Glancing over to where she rested against a tree, he couldn't help but notice the light reflecting off her hair made it look like the sun.

She was sleeping peacefully for the first time since they'd left the sanctuary she'd created. He hated how worried that he felt about her. It was obvious that she felt none of the wonder that Eliza had for the world. He noticed her fear every time that she looked around. She'd created a sanctuary not just for her daughter but because she hated being vulnerable. That made her weak. Instead of solving her issues, she'd hidden away from the world like a coward. Brushing her hair away from her face, he had no doubt that she would've died if not for being the Winter Maiden.

Her skin felt warm under his touch. Despite being the Winter Maiden, she wasn't a very cold person. Allowing his hand to drift down to her neck, he stilled. His fingers lay gently on her skin allowing him to feel her pulse; it would be easy to kill her. Even when awake she was fragile, breakable, even the slightest touch might shatter her like glass. It was tempting to break her. Resisting the urge to cackle, he moved away from her glancing back to Eliza who was completely absorbed in picking flowers before cutting his gaze to the woods around them. This area was known for having grimm even if it seemed peaceful now.

Turning his attention back to Cora he had to wonder how she would react to learning how easily he could kill. There was no way she would simply accept him when she realized he had so much blood on his hands. He wanted to see it; her expression twisted in terror. Reaching out slowly he laid a hand on her cheek only for his eyes to widen when she leaned into his touch. She was still asleep; however, she was leaning toward him. Just for a moment, he hesitated; her peaceful expression was beautiful.

(Ruby)

Sitting on her bed, she flicked through the articles on the rising grimm population outside the city on her scroll. There was so much happening right now it was almost hard to keep up, but she still noticed when Pyrrha walked into the room with her head down and shoulders slumped like she was carrying the weight of the world, Ruby immediately locked onto her partner's form knowing that Ozpin had indeed offered Pyrrha the position of Fall Maiden. Ruby cursed him for putting her partner in such a dangerous situation.

"Blake can you and Jaune go get some snacks while I talk to Pyrrha," she asked softly although it was clearly an order. Sharing a glance, the two moved almost in sync if not for Jaune almost tripping over his feet. While the action would usually bring a smile to Pyrrha's face this time it did nothing to cheer up the redhead. Pyrrha watched the two leave before looking up into her partner's searching eyes. It was moments like this that she had no idea how to read her partner.

"I don't know what to do," Pyrrha whispered sounding for the first time completely defeated. Even when she went to face Cinder in the original timeline, she'd been bold and determined. Gritting her teeth Ruby barely heard her over the blood boiling in her veins. Why did Ozpin think it was a good idea to force something like this onto Pyrrha? There were plenty of other, older, Maiden candidates in the school. Hands clenched into fists Ruby forced a smile onto her face.

"Tell me everything," Ruby ordered and when Pyrrha hesitated she added, "that's an order as the leader of this team."

It wasn't a guaranteed way to get her teammate to speak, she knew that. Even in the original timeline, Pyrrha had told no one about the Fall Maiden, however, she was hoping that the redhead would trust her enough to tell her everything. Yet this wasn't simply about trust, to tell her Pyrrha would have to disobey Ozpin's orders to keep this a secret. There was a chance that she might choose obedience over her loyalty to the team.

Watching the emotions drift across her partner's face, Pyrrha frowned. Ruby was always so easy to read when she was thinking. She'd been watching her partner for a long time along with the others on their team. It wasn't a stretch to say that Ruby schemed every moment of the day. The younger girl was always pushing forward an agenda from simply plotting her and Blake's love life to sneaking off with Cardin. If it wasn't for the fact the boy was dating Russel, she would've believed they were together, yet Ruby was plotting something. She didn't know everything about her leader, but she did know that when no one was looking Ruby would give them glances as if she was afraid of something. It had only been when Jaune confronted her about killing that she actually figured out what those glances meant. Ruby was the youngest on their team, it was easy to forget that when she stood out as a prodigy.

Pyrrha had always been a tournament fighter, yet when she fought that woman on the train, she'd lost due to her own habits. It wasn't the fact she lost that upset her, it was that even when she was losing all she'd wanted to do was try something different despite being afraid to. She was a coward stuck in her own bad habits because that was all she was supposed to be. Her family wanted a prized fighter especially after she'd shown her talent for it. After that, she became what they wanted until she learned that Beacon would take her in.

Ruby had known who she was. She'd seen that knowledge in the girl's silver eyes when she spoke to her, however, she'd treated her like she was her friend, not an idol. Ruby was the reason she was in a relationship with Jaune. So why was it when she saw Blake kill someone to save the girl that she had no idea what to do. There was part of her that wished she'd been the one to protect Ruby instead because she'd done nothing to keep her safe. She'd done nothing while Ruby had done so much for her and she had no idea how she was supposed to repay her leader.

At this moment all Ruby was asking was the truth, she had no idea how she was supposed to give her that truth without betraying the trust that Ozpin put in her, however, she didn't really care. Not only had it been suspicious the way he dragged her up to his office but both the General and Ruby's father were there. If anything, then, Ruby deserved to know about something that concerned her family, plus she was sure that the girl already knew something. At this point, she trusted Ruby far more than she trusted Ozpin. Nodding she began to tell her leader everything that had happened. Reciting every word and action that she remembered. She even mentioned the strained relationship between Qrow and the others of Ozpin's faction.

Ruby listened to her partner silently taking everything in with a calculating gaze. She already knew about Amber and the Maidens but hearing Pyrrha speak about it in such a defeated voice made her blood boil. She wanted to shout and scream until the entire world bent to her will. It wasn't fair that Pyrrha had such a heavy burden pushed toward her. As the girl finished speaking and looked up at her leader she was shocked to see the cold fury in Ruby's silver eyes. She'd never anything like it before, like harden pools of silver filled with rage. Then the expression was gone as if she'd hid it completely.

"Thank you for telling me," she said brightly. There might be a smile on her face, but Ruby's eyes were cold. Her leader was angry, so angry that she felt nothing but terror at the expression. Why was she so angry when she wasn't the one getting used? Pyrrha had no idea why but her leader's expression wasn't just terrifying, but it was also reassuring. She knew that Ruby would never hurt her but now she also knew her leader would fight for her too.

"Wh-"

"I promise not to do anything rash," she said softly. She wasn't going to attack Ozpin. It wouldn't help her or her teammates if she did so. The only thing she could do now was to protect them in her own way.

Three hours later, Ruby walked into the training room and grinned when she saw Weiss practicing her glyphs. The white-haired girl had several hovering in front of her at one time and given the thin layer of sweat covering her forehead she had been at it for a long time. Looking up the heiress immediately noticed the difference in the fellow leader; Ruby's eyes were cold like steel. However, that wasn't the only thing wrong with her, she also had tense shoulders and a predatory walk it made Weiss's hair stand on end.

"Want to practice," Ruby asked the other girl and the heiress wanted desperately to say no but her pride wouldn't let her back down from a challenge. Besides that if Ruby let off some steam then it was possible, she would calm down before the matches tomorrow.

"Aren't you supposed to save your strength for your match," Weiss asked but Ruby shook her head. She was too angry to stay calm right now.

"Come on Weiss just one spar," she pleaded she needing to work off some of her anger. Seeing the dark-haired girl press her hands together as she begged the older girl for a fight. Ruby wasn't a good person, Weiss knew that, but she also knew Ruby needed this. The heiress nodded reluctantly and barely had time to block Thorn as the girl rushed forward it was nice to know Ruby was still good at sneak attacks. Eyes narrowing Weiss pushed the girl back although there was a part of her that wondered what the younger girl was thinking. It was all she could do to keep up as Ruby rushed around the training room like a demon leaving red petals everywhere, she went. Creating gravity glyphs around her she smirked when Ruby was caught and couldn't move.

Ruby took the hit from Weiss's rapier allowing the hit to send her flying but before she hit the wall, she twisted so that she could bounce off and go flying at the heiress again. Weiss countered the hit with a dust shield before stabbing at the girl's chest. She expected the girl to dodge instead, Ruby grabbed the blade in her hand and pulled. Weiss watched in disbelief as her sword was taken easily although the fact, she might've let go had something to do with it. Before she began panicking at the sight of Ruby holding a sharp blade in her hand.

"Ruby," she scolded rushing forward to check on the girl. Slapping the girl's hand, like a disobedient puppy, so she would drop the rapier Weiss didn't even care as her weapon hit the floor. The reaper was more important than her weapon. Checking over the girl she began to scold her again, "of all the reckless thing you could do you choose to grab a sharp blade? What if you'd gotten hurt?"

Ruby watched the white-haired girl closely. There was such open concern on her face that she knew it was real. Weiss was honestly worried about her. Unable to stop herself Ruby laughed causing the other girl to jot. Staring at the younger girl who had just barely covered her mouth to stop the chuckles, Weiss felt her face begin to heat up from embarrassment. Looking away from the younger girl she didn't notice Ruby smirk until the reaper had sheathed her dagger and pulled the heiress into a hug. She'd never expected Weiss could be an overprotective mother hen.

"Thank you," she whispered before Weiss could protest the action. The shocked heiress returned the hug hesitantly as if she'd never had one before. Burying her face in the girl's shoulder Ruby wished she could stop time and simply stay here in this moment with her teammates and friends.

(Ozpin)

He'd tried for years to be a good man, but he'd sacrificed so many that it was hard to see the good in anything anymore. So, he'd dedicated his life to killing his wife and he hated that it had gotten to this point. There were times when he thought that if he'd just stayed a little longer then he could've saved her. There were others that he wished he'd never taken the deal from the gods. In this era, those doubts were all too loud. His greatest allies were determined by years of peace and couldn't compare to the strength their ancestors had. Peace had made these people weak.

Lionheart was weak in both mind and emotion. The man would most likely give up the entire world if it meant saving himself. If it came down to it the only person the man wouldn't sacrifice was most likely his son, however, his son was a huntsman who only cared about himself. As a victim of one of the last attempts of expansion, Carnel Lionheart had lost his entire team making him one of the most experienced and reclusive hunters in Mistral. He was also on a ten-month mission to the grimmlands without backup and no way of contacting him.

James had no idea how to control his own paranoia leading to him bringing an entire army to Vale, his city. He wanted to kill the man. It occurred to him now that he should perhaps choose his generals more carefully. He should never have made James a headmaster, it had been a mistake. Worse the man now wanted to bring not only Winter Schnee but also an entire team of agents in on the secret. He honestly didn't know if James even realized how paranoid he actually was or how foolish the idea of bringing in new agents was.

Theodore from Shade was his most loyal general and he was in Vacuo. What made him the most loyal was the fact he would never do anything to put his children in danger. By his children, he meant all the children in Shade Academy. Theodore, who hated being called Theo, considered every child in Shade his responsibility. It was a responsibility that he took very seriously as well. He was considering proposing a student exchange program with Vacuo after this Vytal festival.

Glynda was Glynda the only person he trusted. That was why she was his right hand in everything. He would always protect her if not for any reason other than because she reminded him of the woman Salem was before he died. He cared about her more than he should. Years ago, when they met, she'd signed up to join him without hesitation.

Qrow was both his biggest mistake and his biggest ally. It was his fault Summer was dead, he didn't bother hiding that fact at all. He'd made far more mistakes than anyone alive and Summer was one of those mistakes. That was why he wanted to kill Salem so that no more people were killed for the sake of this battle. With Qrow beside him, he saw the mistake he made in sending Summer out into the field all those days ago. Now he had the daughter of two of his strongest generals as his student and he knew that he couldn't trust her.

If he could then she wouldn't be walking into his office with that ice-cold look in her eyes. Leaning back in his chair as her eyes flickered to his, he knew immediately that her teammate had told her everything about the Fall Maiden. If he was a lesser man, he would feel terrified at having her here in his office with that expression on her face that could make an ocean freeze. Summer had the exact same expression on her face when he mentioned turning Qrow and Raven into birds. He had no idea if tiny women should be this terrifying but there was one in every lifetime.

"I expected you would be arriving, and I expected you to try killing me," he said as she frowned at him from her spot beside the elevator door. The grip she had on her dagger was worrying but he knew that she wouldn't attack him. Not when she had too much to lose because of it.

"What gave me away," she asked softly. The grip on her dagger tightened as she considered putting it through his throat.

"I've known many young women like you," he admitted. In all his lifetimes he'd met people like her and every one of them was far more dangerous than the grimm. In truth, he would rather be on her good side than have that blade in her hand tear out his neck. Leaning forward he smirked causing her eyes to narrow as he said, "the one thing they all had in common was that they only fought for those they cared for. Anyone that threatened them was either killed or converted. I'm far too old for you to convert. It's simply in your nature. Your DNA to destroy what you see as a threat."

Everything he said was true. There was no other way to describe her actions here tonight. Even after Cardin had warned her, she'd still come up here to threaten him away from Pyrrha. It was the only thing she could think to do. She wanted to rip him into pieces. He knew that she was a bloodthirsty insane girl, but he still allowed her to come to this school. For that reason, only she would allow him to live, but the moment he made a move toward what she considered hers she would kill him. Rip out his throat and burn the body to keep people from finding out.

"Find a different Maiden, Pyrrha isn't going to die for you."

There it was the darkened tone to her voice promising death that he knew so well. Her mother had the same tone and so did her grandmother and all the Silver Eyed Warriors before her. In the stories told, it wasn't only the grimm that the warriors posed a threat to. It was anyone they deemed a threat to their loved ones. She wasn't bluffing, she would kill him the second she got a chance. Staring into her lightly glowing silver eyes he nodded slowly. Watching her spin on her heel and walk away he hid a smirk. She was strong, and she would be the one to end this war against Salem.


	36. Show Time

It was finally time for the finals and despite knowing what was going to happen, Ruby couldn't help being excited as she bounced in place beside her sister. Everything was about to change; her plans were finally about to be realized. She resolutely ignored the tiny part of her that wanted to play hero and save everyone. The only people she cared about were hers and all others could protect themselves. With an exasperated smile, Yang put her hand on top of her sister's head to stop the bouncing. Ruby wanted to fight; she didn't really care who she fought. Pyrrha was safe so she could enjoy what little time the tournament had left without fear.

"Ruby you'll get to have fun so stop bouncing," Yang scolded although there was no heat in her voice. She'd long since given up trying to control her little sister. The girl was far too strong and independent to allow anyone to control her.

Mercury chuckled watching the two sisters interact while Sun twirled his staff wondering how long it would take the other finalists to figure out that she would not stop bouncing. From the looks of concern and curiosity, it would take a while. Most of them were a bit wary of the girl given that she'd treated this entire tournament like a game. He didn't blame them. She was after all one of the most dangerous people in the ring even if she didn't act like it. If he had to guess they most likely felt some kind of instinctive urge to avoid her.

"She's not going to stop," Mercury pointed out smirking when silver eyes locked on him. Rewarding his smirk with her own she turned her attention to Sun who simply shrugged and grinned brightly as if there was nothing wrong with a fifteen-year-old that thrived on violence.

"He does have a point," Sun said and Ruby turned her attention to him. The amusement in her gaze was much more terrifying than her anger.

"Well if I fight you, I won't hold back," she stated with a mocking tone. The issue however was that it was more a threat than anything else. Seeing him wince she giggled before turning her attention to Penny who smiled softly. Tilting her head, she watched the ginger android closely; she wasn't going to allow anything to happen to the other girl. Penny was hers.

When Yang and Mercury were called to have the first match Ruby couldn't stop herself from pouting. She knew what was going to happen but at the same time, she really wanted to fight these people. There was simply something appealing about battle that she didn't feel her last life, now she loved fighting more than anything else. It was strange. Tearing her gaze away from her sister, she glanced over at Mercury who met her eyes for only a moment. The self-assured arrogance in his eyes was attractive. Her lips twisted into a smirk when he winked at her.

"Come and sit with me Ruby," Penny exclaimed catching the reaper off guard.

Raising an eyebrow, she allowed the girl to grab her hand on the way out of the arena. Penny was a lot more comfortable around her now than she used to be; the brightness in her eyes was something Ruby had only found in one other person and that was Jaune. Penny was exactly like the blonde boy. Nodding she followed the girl who clung to her hand; sending one last glance at her sister she ignored the twinge of regret that she felt. Sitting down beside Penny in the stands she immediately noticed Ironwood was currently sending her studying glances.

"General," Ruby said in greeting as she sat beside Penny. She briefly wondered if he'd noticed any similarities between her and her father before deciding that it didn't matter it was too late to start worrying about that now.

He nodded to the girl and watched as they began talking about whatever crossed the reaper's mind. For a long time, he'd been scouting this girl along with several others to come to Atlas. Now she was sitting here talking to his secret weapon. He had no idea if she was to be trusted especially with the fact, she looked so much like Qrow, however, Penny liked her and it was best to keep weapons of mass destruction happy. There was part of him that wanted to simply ask Ozpin if the girl could come to Atlas, but if she was truly Qrow's child then he had no desire to have her in his school; well he had a grudging desire but a more noticeable one to keep the Branwen family away from his liquor cabinet.

"What are your plans after graduation Miss Rose," he asked getting her attention. He knew it was four years away, but she had to have some sort of plan for her future. It was a question he asked all his students, and he was hoping that Ozpin did the same for his own kids.

World domination. Her plan was world domination with a side of chaos, but she couldn't actually tell him that. Not only would it sound childish, but she doubted a military general would agree with her taking over the world. At the moment she didn't really have a choice beyond pretending she didn't have a plan and acting like a normal teenager. Well until the chaos started and she was able to build her power base. Why did she suddenly feel like she was a villain?

"I haven't really thought about it," she said. Meeting his eyes for a moment she noticed the way he was studying her before letting her lips tilt upward into a teasing smirk. He didn't believe her for a second.

"Come to Atlas then," Penny said pulling on her arm. Snapping her gaze back to the eager android, Ruby raised an eyebrow at the girl. She'd often over the last month wondered just how old Penny was, from her action right now she looked like a five-year-old. Letting her smirk fade into a soft, fond, smile she noticed the girl's eyes brighten.

"I'm sure I'll make my way to Atlas eventually," she said causing Penny to hop in place. It was enough to satisfy Penny while keeping her plans ambiguous. Cutting her eyes back to the fight she chased away her growing guilt as it got closer to the moment, she was both waiting for and dreading.

"Miss Rose if you were to lead an army, who would you send to die for you," Ironwood asked causing her to glance at him with a raised eyebrow. It was the same look Qrow gave him when he believed he was being stupid.

"I would die first," she stated like it was the most obvious thing in the world before turning back to her conversation with Penny. She had no hesitation or doubts about dying. It was far easier to die than watch those she cared about be killed. After all, she already knew what was waiting for her on the other side there was no great mystery to the afterlife. Although she would love to stay alive with her friends and family, if it was needed, she would die for them.

Sitting back the general thought over her answer with a frown. She'd said the words too quickly, too easily. It was like she didn't value her own life; that was both worrying and a little alarming. Just what was Ozpin teaching his students? Deciding to think about it later he sighed and tried to turn his attention back to the ongoing match. Looking back at the match he tensed when he saw Yang lash out against a helpless boy; well there went the quiet peace of the tournament. For a moment he wanted to slam his head against a wall as all the work he'd done to ensure this tournament went smoothly came crashing down when he heard a low growl from beside him. His eyes shot over to Ruby to find her already standing.

Shaking off Penny's clinging hand, she forced back her anger in favor of vanishing from the stadium in a rush of petals. She'd thought it would be okay, seeing Yang's face twist into something so vulnerable. Being able to handle it was something she'd never doubted; however, the rage at someone hurting what was hers was too overwhelming to even see straight. She'd thought she could handle it, yet she'd never seen Yang look so vulnerable. Her sister had always been this ray of sunshine. She never wanted to see her sister like that again.

Bypassing Cardin before he could grab her, she skidded to a stop in the maintenance hall before lashing out with a kick. The kick hurt the wall far more than it hurt her. Eyeing the dent, she'd made in the wall she considered kicking it again before a hand grabbed her arm pulling her away from the wall. It was probably for the best considering she had almost zero control of her strength right now and some part of her realized that. The larger crueler part of her however lashed out.

Twisting to pin Cardin to the wall, she bared her teeth, looking far wilder than any faunus that he'd ever seen before. A normal person would've faltered and shrunk back hoping that doing so would grant them freedom. He wasn't normal; after spending so many years with her, he knew exactly how she felt right now and just how bad it would end if he allowed her to leave without calming down. Laying a hand on the arm pressing against his chest he raised an eyebrow waiting for her to realize what she was doing.

Most people would be unsettled by the tiny redhead who seemed to be considering whether to carve out his eyes or not; he felt only amusement. Ruby would never hurt him. Even unintentionally she would rather die than harm anyone she considered to belong to her. If there was one thing, he could always count on it was her psychopathic protective instincts to keep her from attacking him. They should probably work on that too; it wouldn't do to have her lose her temper again and kill someone; again. Maybe he needed to get her a therapist, but he had no idea who could actually deal with her rampages and still retain their sanity.

Groaning Ruby leaned forward pressing her forehead against his chest as she tried to keep her temper under control. Part of her wanted to rip Mercury to pieces but the other was rebelling at the very thought. He was hers. Despite the fact, he currently worked for Cinder who worked for Salem he was still someone that she cared about. Hell, even Cinder was someone she wanted on her side. Allowing herself to lose control and act on her rage would do nothing but ruin her plans. The very plans she'd spent years crafting.

Digging her nails into his shirt she relaxed only a little when he laid a hand on her head. She didn't have to tell him how she was feeling; even without his semblance, he would've been able to tell. Breathing deeply, she sighed before pulling away. His hand never left her hair as she tried to reign in her temper, instead he channeled his semblance into minimizing her rage. It wasn't easy considering just how much of it she'd buried over the years.

"Do you think my temper would be better if I got laid," she asked completely serious. She blamed teenage hormones for how frustrated she'd been lately.

"Again your fifteen."

"Screw that! If I'm old enough to face down Grimm then I'm allowed to have sex," she snapped crossing her arms. The unimpressed look on his face didn't help her growing annoyance at all.

"With who?"

Roman.

Neo.

Cinder.

Mercury.

Maybe Emerald.

Right well, her entire list of people to maybe have sex with were criminals. It was enough to prove she had a type.

"Anyway, back to reality," she said before her brain could start spiraling. Shaking her head she said, "I need to go check on my sister."

"Who's actually your cousin," he stated causing her to shush him before she rushed to find her sister and her team.

(Tyrian)

He was covered in blood that couldn't be mistaken as rain even as it poured down around him. For the first time, the dark liquid on his hands felt heavy as he stared into the vibrant eyes of the child across from him. Her hair clung to the sides of her face turning darker just as the smears of blood clung to her clothing. Despite how her hands dug into her shirt she was trembling unable to move even when she'd been dropped to the ground. The blades on his wrists were dragging him down to earth as he watched her struggle to catch her breath with the empty-eyed corpse lying beside her.

He knew that he was a monster but having her look at him with terror made him feel like one.

"Eliza!"

Sucking in a trembling breath he looked away as Cora ran past him in a hurricane of blonde curls. The golden flames around her eyes shuttered to a halt as she collapsed to her knees in front of her daughter. Switching his blades back into their sheathed position he couldn't fight the strange feeling bubbling in his stomach. For so long he'd thought that seeing Cora's face twisted in fear would make him happy; that he would get some kind of pleasure from watching her crumble. Instead, he felt horrible.

When the bandits had ambushed them, he'd fallen straight back into the cycle of killing without hesitation. After all, they were a threat to the Winter Maiden and his Queen's will. He'd expected Cora to crumble, instead, she'd retaliated the instant he'd moved. Her own white coat had been splattered with blood as the threads she controlled tore them apart. The only moment she'd stilled was when one grabbed her daughter. His tail had torn through the man's neck leaving the girl covered in his blood.

Looking down at his hand he gritted his teeth. They were safe, he'd done his duty, so why did he feel as if he'd failed? Was it the way she looked at him in terror that caused this feeling of sickness to rise in him?

The sound of footsteps was his only warning before the small blonde was clinging to him despite her mother's sound of protest. He stumbled his hand landing on her shoulder as she trembled with sobs that brought a dense frown to his face. Shifting his attention to Cora he raised an eyebrow at the way she hesitated. The action was all she needed to cross the distance between them. Laying a hand on her daughter's back, she looked down hoping that he didn't see the regret and fear in her own eyes.

It took her over an hour to calm down her daughter enough that they could get out of the rain and take refuge in a cave. Now all she could do was stare into the fire and hope that her daughter didn't ask questions like how she was able to carve apart bandits with the thin wires hidden under her sleeves. Gripping her pendant tightly she took a trembling breath as Tyrian stared out the mouth of the cave with narrowed eyes. Looking up at him she found herself tensing.

When he showed up in her haven, she was going to kill him just like she killed the others who were unlucky enough to break through her defenses. If she'd killed him that day, Eliza would've never learned how dark the world could be. Her daughter would still be the innocent girl who smiled like the sun. At the same time, he'd also saved Eliza's life when she'd been unable to move. He hadn't hesitated to slaughter the man who touched her daughter which was far more than the girl's biological father would ever do.

Dropping the pendant, she stood slowly her movement causing his tail to twitch. Despite knowing that she was moving he didn't turn to look at her as she came to stand beside him. Today was the first time in a decade that she felt true bloodlust again; it was both a blessing and a curse. She'd never known she missed the feeling so much until the blood had landed on her coat. All those years she'd spent hiding hadn't tempered her weapons at all least of all her own ability to cause pain and terror.

"You were smiling today," he said softly. Gazing at him she frowned when he continued, "When those threads of yours cut apart that first bandit your face lit up."

She'd hoped that he hadn't seen that. She wasn't a murderer or a psychopath; not anymore, she was a mother. Her daughter didn't need to know just how messed up her mother was. Sending a glance at Eliza she relaxed when she noticed that the girl was still asleep.

"I know," she admitted.

"There's nothing wrong with doing what you love," he said with a growing grin.

"I don't love battle," she stated. The words didn't phase him at all.

"No, you love killing."

Sucking in a breath she couldn't argue. She'd spent years killing and if she'd stayed in Atlas that would've only continued. Ever since she was born, she'd been a killer, that was how she'd been raised. To have blood on her hands again had been liberating; he'd given her that rush back. Watching him return his attention to their surroundings she eyed him closely before moving slowly to wrap her arms around him. The fact he froze but didn't stop her told her more than his voice ever could.

(Ruby)

Entering the dorm of Weiss's team she was ready for anything; well almost anything, she did not, however, count on seeing the heiress and her sister having a lip lock. Blinking she stood there stunned until Ren took pity on her and coughed to get their attention. She'd known that the two were getting closer but she hadn't thought that they were this close. Looking at the heiress now she could agree that her sister had picked a very attractive woman. When the two looked up at her after jumping apart, she offered them a wicked smirk.

"Well I guess you're okay then," she said causing Weiss's face to turn red. Ruby raised an eyebrow and continued, "it seems Weiss here is going to kiss away all your aches and pains."

"Ruby," Yang scolded when she saw Weiss hide her face in her hands. Nora giggled at the light teasing but Ren simply raised an eyebrow. Deciding not to annoy her sister anymore, Ruby walked into the room a foot-long brown box in her hands.

"This is for Weiss," she said handing over the box. If she didn't give it to her now there was a possibility that she would never get the chance for a while. The heiress opened it cautiously and gasped at the beautiful weapon inside. A dagger with pale silver metal and a light blue wrapped hilt; it looked as if was the embodiment of the Schnee name. Ice cold and fragile as glass. Seeing her dismayed look Ruby said, "I've had it for a while now and figured it was time to hand it over."

"But why," Weiss asked confused. Even her family didn't give out gifts for no reason usually it was only when they wanted something from her.

"This is me saying welcome to the family," she said softly her eyes meeting Weiss's. Now that she knew how much the girl means to her sister, she would allow nothing to happen to the white-haired girl. Offering Weiss, a soft smile that was oddly vulnerable she said, "I've always noticed how sad you look when people aren't paying attention. I thought that maybe this would cheer you up."

It was easy to notice when Weiss had almost the same look she'd been known for in her first life. Even now there were times when she wished that someone had taken the time to look at her and try to help her.

"Thank you," Weiss told her not knowing what to do or say. She didn't think anyone would notice her loneliness. Yang smiled brightly throwing her arm around the heiress who flushed almost instantly.

"See Weiss told you everything would be okay."

"So, Yang how are you doing," Ruby asked changing the subject. The blonde frowned her happy mood gone as she looked down at her hands.

"I saw him attack me. I swear I did," Yang said knowing she must sound insane. Weiss reached out grabbing the brawler's hand knowing how important it was for Yang to have Ruby believe her. For a moment the redhead simply stood there her silver eyes narrowing slightly, then she smirked.

"Well I doubt you would just attack him for no reason," she said with a shrug. The words caught her sister off guard causing the blonde to look up at her surprised. Seeing the expression Ruby asked, "what did you think I wouldn't believe you. Yang, you're my sister, your version of events is more important to me than anyone else's."

There was also the fact she knew that Emerald had played with her sister's mind. Maybe the thief needed a spanking; right well she needed that image out of her mind now. Forcing her attention back to Yang when the blonde's eyes filled with unshed tears she sighed and opened her arms. Without hesitation, the blonde hugged her tightly. Running a gentle hand through her sister's hair, she let go of a bit of the anger she still felt. Pulling away when she noticed the longing in Nora's eyes, she shoved her sister back at Weiss with a wink.

"At least now you two can spend your time doing something a little more fun than battle," she teased. Watching them both flush scarlet she escaped with a laugh before her sister could catch her.

There was something to be said for being raised for warfare. Every huntsmen and huntress had instincts that if listened too would help them survive. It was the same for soldiers. That was why she noticed some of the students tensing up when she walked into the ring for her match against Sun. She hoped that this was random; it would be nice if it was, but she didn't believe that was so. There was part of her that wanted to drag this out but that wasn't needed right now. She was hoping that this was the match that would kick off the Fall of Beacon.

It had only been twenty-four hours since her sister was shammed publicly and in that time Yang had been vilified by every civilian in Vale. The chaotic energy inside her cried out at the injustice did to her sister but she shoved that down. It was almost time to cut loose. She needed to cut loose.

Smirking at the blonde faunus across from her she winked at him causing a grin to stretch across his face. Laying a hand on her weapon she raised a hand motioning for him to attack. Rolling his eyes at the mocking gesture, the faunus spun his staff while she stood there waiting for the fight to start. Flickering her eyes to where she knew that Cardin was sitting, she got a nod in response seconds before Oobleck started the fight and Sun lunged forward. He was obviously hoping to stop her from unfolding her weapon. Cute.

The world slowed around her as she vanished in a torrent of petals that dropped to the ground gently. Circling the boy who'd stilled almost instantly, the reaper unfolded her scythe before leaping into the air. It was instinct that had him turning to block her decapitating strike, but he wasn't expecting her to turn her scythe into rifle mode at close range. Throwing himself to the side he winced as her bullet tore into the arena floor. She really was a demon.

Dodging the gunfire, he closed the distance but that didn't wipe the smirk from her lips. Giggling as she was forced to dodge one of the nun chucks, Ruby flipped away from him. Fighting Sun wasn't something she'd done often enough to be able to read his moves ahead of time, yet this was fun. As he ran forward, she did the same a wicked grin on her face that could've scared the devil.

Cardin watched the match thinking how lucky it was that he wasn't the one down there he'd been her punching bag enough times to know when she was really into a fight. Sitting behind Emerald in the crowd he kept an eye on the woman waiting for her to do something interesting. He wouldn't allow anything to interfere with Ruby's match more for their safety than her own. Eyes shifting over to the green-haired woman he almost missed seeing an Atlassian robot screen turn red. The blood in his veins froze as he leaped to his feet startling the crowd around him.

Cardin shouting her name was distracting but it snapped her out of her blood lust. Cutting her eyes to her surroundings even as Sun skidded to a stop, she cursed. A glint of metal caught her eye and her heart stopped when she saw where the Atlassian robots were aiming. Part of her wondered if it was Emerald messing with her head but she couldn't take that chance. Without thinking, she threw away her scythe more concerned with teaching him in time and it worked. Her arms wrapped around his waist knocking the startled boy off his feet at the same time a bullet covered in blood sank into the arena floor followed by panicked screaming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys. I'm back in college taking fall classes one of them is Anatomy; fun right.
> 
> Moving on it's finally time for the Fall of Beacon that I'm putting all in one chapter. What did you guys think about this chapter?
> 
> -Stay safe and have a good day
> 
> -Shyla

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, guys
> 
> So this is the Shadowed rewrite. When I started the first book of Shadowed I was in my last year of Highschool and an aspiring writer. Now I'm a 20-year-old college student. I feel like I owe you guys so much more than you will ever know. Before I published the first chapter of Shadowed I honestly hadn't thought I would be able to make it as a writer, because of the reviews, both good and bad, that I was given, I grew as a writer and a person. Knowing that I felt that I could rewrite this fic and hopefully, you would love it just as much as the original. Your reviews are honestly the only reason I continued writing and started Black Sunsets, good or bad they keep me moving forward. I'm so grateful for the time you took to even read my fics. (But just so you know, if anyone calls me a "Dumbass" for a grammar mistake, I will laugh, then rain hellfire down on your eternal soul). Anyway, thank you for taking the time to read this rewrite. 
> 
> please let me know what you think, and have a nice day.


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